


Fade to Black

by Buddha1800



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Disabled Character, Gen, Panic Attacks, Physical Disability
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-20
Updated: 2016-04-06
Packaged: 2018-05-15 05:29:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 38,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5773114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Buddha1800/pseuds/Buddha1800
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When tragedy strikes there are two options. A person can wallow in their pain and grief or they can grow. This is a story about Asami's choice. Please be aware this story includes mentions and descriptions of panic attacks and disability. I have tried my best to stay honest to the themes I set out to portray. If anyone is offended by my descriptions of panic attacks or disability I sincerely apologize.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Into the Darkness

**Author's Note:**

> This is not a Korrasami love story. This story focuses on Asami and the idea of life after a tragedy.

Brakes squealing  
Tires screeching  
Metal crumpling  
Glass shattering  
Lights flash  
Blurred scenery

In the last seconds of the life I knew the last thing I saw was blood. Red drops on the ground. Then the world faded to black.

I wake up to darkness. Again. I grope around for my robe and edge out of the bed. I use the bed as a guide until I get to the foot, then three steps and I find the doorway to the bathroom. I flip the switch on the wall out of habit and turn to face the mirror. I stand there facing the mirror looking at darkness. I run my hands down my face then through my hair. I wonder if I look anything like I did before.

I take care of my business in the bathroom and use the wall to find my bedroom door. I open it and call out to Mrs. Chiba. She is one of the maids that has become my personal aide since the accident. I have no idea how she can always hear me when I call, but within moments I can hear her approaching from down the hallway. I turn back into my room and use the wall as my guide to find my dressing table and sit down in the chair in front of it.

“Good Morning Miss Sato. You’re up early.” Mrs. Chiba greets me as she enters my room.

“I just want to get today over with.” I reply dryly. Lately I stay in bed most of the day and only leave my room when my father insists that I come out. Last night over dinner he informed me that he was sending me to a retreat so I can “pull it together.” I was furious and fumbled my way back to my room.

“What would you like to wear today?” Mrs. Chiba asked pulling me out of my thoughts.

“It doesn’t really matter. Just pick something.” I let out a sad sigh. I used to love going into my closet and browsing for just the right outfit for the day or evening. Getting dressed and applying my makeup were the hallmarks to the start of my day. Now I just sit here and wait for Mrs. Chiba and wonder what I’m supposed to do at this retreat. Haven’t I retreated enough by closing myself in my room? Does my father think I’ll just snap out of it and suddenly not be blind anymore?

After a few minutes of internal fuming Mrs. Chiba informs me that she has laid out a pair of pants, a blouse, my favorite light jacket, and a pair of shoes. She even puts out the socks and undergarments. She then comes over to me and starts brushing my hair. Once she is done brushing my hair she puts it in a simple ponytail and leaves the room so I can get dressed.

I call out letting her know I’m done and she comes back into the room. She starts packing my things for my retreat asking me questions about this article of clothing and that beauty product. I’m generally non committal and unenthusiastic about everything. When she’s done packing she puts a cane in my hands.

“I hate this thing.” I mumble as we leave my room. 

Mrs. Chiba calls out to the driver that my bags are ready as we near the bottom of the stairs. She guides me to the table in the kitchen where I used to sit and eat breakfast every morning. I haven’t sat in here in awhile. 

“I’m not hungry.”  
“Pretend.” She says as she places a plate and mug on the table in front of me.

I reluctantly sit down and explore the table surface. I find a small plate with a bagel on it and the mug just at the far edge of the plate. It’s hot so I’m guessing it contains tea because that is my usual drink of choice. I sigh and quietly eat my breakfast. 

After I’m done eating Mrs. Chiba leads me to the front of the house and helps me to the waiting car.

“Mr. Lee will take you to the docks where you both will take the ferry to Air Temple Island. From there one of the monks will greet you and escort you. I hope you have a good time. I’ll see you soon.”

She pats my hand and closes the car door. I hear Mr. Lee get behind the wheel and close his door. My nerves are on edge. I haven’t been in a car since I left the hospital 6 months ago. I put on my seatbelt and hold onto my cane for dear life. If you looked at me you may have the idea that Mr. Lee is a reckless driver or that I’m strapped to a rocket about to be launched. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. Lee is an excellent driver and in 15 years of service has never had so much as a fender bender. Even the car was chosen to help ward off my anxiety. The Sato Monarch was comfy, quiet, and smooth. When the car stopped at the docks I had almost forgotten that we were moving in the first place.

My door opened and Mr. Lee helped me out of the car.  
“Would you like to stay on the deck or an inside cabin, Miss Sato?” He asked closing the car door.

“A cabin please.” My nerves were on end and I was feeling jumpy being out in the open.

“Yes Miss Sato.” He replied. I felt his arm brush my hand and I held on as he guided me up the ramp to the ferry. A few turns later I was seated in a cabin with Mr. Lee by my side. The man was so quiet it was easy to forget he was there, so I was startled when he announced we had arrived at the island. He escorted me off the ferry and I was immediately struck with the difference of my surroundings.

The air smelled different. It was a mixture of sea and trees. I could feel the heaviness of the moisture in the air. It reminded me of trips to the beach with my parents when I was a child. Now I’m all grown up and alone.


	2. Air Temple Island

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami arrives at Air Temple Island and meets some new people.

A monk, I assume, approached us and introduced himself as Yama.  
“Hello Miss Sato and welcome to Air Temple Island. Please allow me to escort you to the main building.” 

I could hear his clothes move as he approached me and offered his arm. I took hold and felt the loose cloth brush my hand. We started walking heading uphill. As we moved I tried to pay attention to as much detail as possible. I could tell the path we were on was not paved because I could feel the inconsistencies of the surface. I could smell something like sandalwood wafting off of Yama, which makes sense if he is really a monk because he probably uses incense when meditating. The sounds of birds flying and the crashing waves reassured me of where I was.

Yama kept a steady pace while telling me about the island and its amenities. I tried to listen to his soft voice but I was too nervous to really pay attention. I just want to get to my room and curse my father.

As promised Yama delivered me to the main building where I was greeted by a man named Tenzin and his wife Pema.

“Hello Miss Sato. My name is Tenzin.” His voice was deep and came from over my head. He must be very tall. “Your father has explained your situation and I hope I can help you with your depression and anxiety. This is my wife Pema and she will help you get settled. We will have a chance to talk before dinner.”

Suddenly there was a softer voice to the right of Tenzin. She was much shorter than him. “Hello Miss Sato. I can take you to your room if you like.”

I can’t believe I’m here. I can’t believe my life has come to this. I keep hoping that I’ll wake up and my normal life will resume. I’ll wake up and pick out my clothes, put on some makeup, read the paper while eating breakfast, and get into my car and go to class. I’ve been hoping for 6 months, but I’m beginning to believe I may be stuck like this forever.

I hold my hand out and Pema, I guess, moves her arm to my hand. I don’t know how they know not to grab me but it’s a relief. There was a learning curve with the staff at the mansion. A couple of times someone would grab my hand and start walking causing me to lose my balance and nearly fall.  
Pema leads me inside a building and to the room I’ll be staying in. She opens the door and removes my hand from her arm and places it on the door frame. That soft voice of hers begins to describe the room to me. Inside the room on the right wall is the switch that controls the light and ceiling fan. Directly opposite the door is a window. Just under the window is a desk and chair that are about 5 paces away. Immediately to the right and perpendicular to the desk is the bed that is against the far and right walls. At the foot of the bed is a trunk with extra blankets inside and towels on top. Across from the bed on the opposite wall is the dresser. She explains that they took up the rug from the floor of my room so I wouldn’t trip. I ask about the bathroom and she tells me it’s at the end of the hall, which is currently to my right, about 4 paces away. I realize that means my room is at the end of the hallway, thankfully. Before parting she says that my bags are on the bed and there’s room in the corner to the left of the dresser to place them out of the way. 

“I’ll let you get settled and send one of my girls to come get you for lunch.” She says.  
“Thank you.” I reply. I hear her footsteps begin to retreat. I close the door and find the desk chair to sit down. I feel so lost and helpless right now. Even though I’m on an island in the bay and no more than 20 miles from the mansion I feel like I’m on the other side of the world with no way home. Now that I think about the way my father has been acting I don’t know if I even have a home to go to. The tears start to fall and I don’t bother to try to stop them.

Some time later there was a knock at the door.

“Hello? Miss Sato?” A voice calls out. It sounds young and female. It must belong to one of Pema’s girls.

“Yes.” I answer.  
“I’m here to take you to lunch. It’s being served in the main dining hall.” 

I had stopped crying a while ago and was sitting in the chair with my legs pulled up to my chest. “No thank you. I’m not hungry.”

“Are you sure?” She asks.  
“Yes. Go ahead without me.” I tell her.  
“Okay.”  
Everything goes quiet again and I resume brooding.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I jerk awake at the sound of knocking on my door. “Hello.”

“Hi Miss Sato. It’s me again. I just wanted to check on you now that I have finished lunch. May I open the door?” It’s the same girl that came by to get me for lunch. 

I put my legs down and sit up properly in the chair. “Yes.” The door opens and I hear the girl’s light steps.

“Hi. I brought you a sandwich. I know you said you weren’t hungry before, but that was a little while ago and dinner won’t be served for a few hours. Should I place it on the desk?” 

“Yes, thank you. That was thoughtful of you.” I try to make sure I don’t sound bitter. She is just a little girl trying to be nice after all. Maybe I can even be social for a minute. “What kind of sandwich is it?”

“It’s grilled cheese with mushroom. I hope that’s okay.” She brushes by me and I hear a plate being placed on the desk. “I also brought a glass of water.” That must be the other noise I heard as something else was placed on the desk.

“Thank you, uh...what is your name?” I ask.  
“Oh. I’m sorry. I haven’t introduced myself. My name is Jinora. Tenzin and Pema are my parents.”  
“Well, thank you Jinora for the food.”  
“You’re welcome. Can I get you anything else?” She sounds so eager.  
“No. I’m fine.”  
“Okay then, I’ll go for now and come back later to take you to my dad’s office.” I hear her moving and then the door closes.

I reach out and find the sandwich. Pulling my knees back up to my chest, I tear a piece of the sandwich and try it. It’s actually good and I’m probably hungrier that I was willing to admit. At least I won’t starve here.

Some time later Jinora came back and escorted me to her dad’s office as promised. Now I’m sitting in his office and he is, oddly enough, sitting directly across from me rather than behind his desk.

“We missed you for lunch.” He began.  
“I wasn’t hungry.”  
“For food or social interaction?”  
“Take your pick.” I shrug his question away.  
“Jinora tells me you haven’t unpacked yet. Are you not staying?”  
“Am I not free to leave?” I retort.  
“Of course you are free to leave.” He backpedals. “I was just hoping that you would stay for a little while.”  
“Why?”  
“Your father told me about your situation and I think I can help. If you let me that is.”  
“What exactly did my dear old dad tell you.” I’m seething just thinking about my father telling some monk to fix his daughter.  
“He explained that you were in a very bad car accident several months ago causing your current state of blindness. Since leaving the hospital you have been withdrawn and unmotivated. He told me about the different mobility aids and therapist he has hired to try to help you, but you’ve not made much progress.”  
“Mobility aids and therapist.” I practically spit the words out. “My father is just throwing his money at everything and anyone who promises to fix his broken daughter. How much did he give you to make me his perfect little girl again?” My words are harsh. I’ve never spoken to anyone like this before, but right now I’m so hurt and angry that I can’t help it.  
“Miss Sato, please calm down. I didn’t promise your father anything. He called me asking for help because he was afraid of losing you to your depression. I said I would talk to you because I’ve worked with individuals with depression before with success.”  
“So you’re saying that his response to his fear of losing me is to ship me off to an island of monks. That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.” I’m nearly shouting by now.  
“What would you have him do? He has no idea how to deal with the situation.” His voice is calm despite my attitude.  
“He could talk to me.” I choke on the words. “I have talked to dozens of people since I woke up in the hospital. Doctors, nurses, therapist, aids, the list goes on. Meanwhile I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve spoken with my father. He didn’t even bring me here, his driver did! He is the only family I have and he abandoned me.” I tried hard to hold them back with anger and indignation but the tears are flowing again. I hear movement and feel a cloth being placed in my hands. I use it to try to control the rivers flowing down my face. There is a light touch on my shoulder as Tenzin tries to comfort me.  
“I can assure you that you have not been abandoned. The man I spoke to on the phone was desperate to get his daughter back. He loves you very much and only wants you to be happy again. His methods may make him feel distant but you are his priority. This I am sure of.”

He sits quietly patting my shoulder while I try to absorb his words. He could be telling the truth. I think back over my life with my dad. My mother died when I was young and for a brief time my dad wasn’t very present in my life. As I got older and showed a talent in building things and general tinkering he started showing an interest in me. I spent a lot of time in his workshop with him after that. We didn’t really talk much beyond whatever project we were working on but he was there in his own way. Maybe Tenzin is right. Maybe he just doesn’t know what to do with me. Hell, I don’t even know what to do with me.

I take a deep breath and try to compose myself into something better than an angry, crying mess.  
“I’m sorry for yelling at you.” I finally break the silence.  
“Thank you for that.” His voice is gentle.  
“What am I supposed to do?”  
“Let me try to help you.”  
“How?”  
“Let’s start simple. You said you feel alone. Come eat dinner tonight with my family. We may not be your family, but if you let us we can show you that you are not alone.”  
“Okay.” I guess at this point I really don’t have anything to lose by accepting his help.

Tenzin left to go get Jinora to guide me around until dinner was ready. He suggested I take a stroll around the gardens to clear my head.

“Hi. It’s Jinora again.” She announces as she comes into the office..  
“Hi Jinora.”  
“My dad said you might want to go to the gardens. I can take you if you like.” She’s being cautious.  
“Can you lead me to a bathroom first please? I want to clean my face.”  
“Sure.” The girl immediately perks up.  
I stand from the chair and reach out. Jinora moves to my hand and I grab her shoulder taking note of how short she is.

We walked around the island to pass the time before dinner and this time I was able to pay attention to my guide. Jinora explained the overall layout of the island for me. At the base of the island on one side is a beach with the dock for the ferry. From there you walk up a path to reach the flat top of the island. There are several buildings all interconnected with raised walkways that I can easily follow using my cane. The island has separate dormitories for men and women, a library, greenhouses, a dining hall, an activities building, and the main temple building where Tenzin’s office is located. There are also pavilions for meditating, a martial arts practice area, and gardens. 

She also explained that the island is a retreat for many people not just monks and blind girls. Apparently people come here to relax and get away from city life. With the island being located in the bay of Republic City that makes for a fairly busy island. They offer guests things like acupuncture, massage therapy, guided meditation sessions, and vegetarian cooking classes.

We had walked to the far edge of the island in one of the flower gardens when Jinora suggested we start heading back because the dinner bell would be ringing soon. I hadn’t realized how much calmer I felt until my heart started racing at the thought of sitting down for dinner with her family. I inadvertently squeezed her shoulder in my angst. She stopped walking and turned towards me.

“Are you okay?” She asks.  
“I’m not sure I’m up for this. It’s been awhile since I’ve been around more than one or two people.” I explain.  
“You’ll be okay. It’s just going to be my family. You already know my dad and my mom. You will meet my younger sister Ikki, my younger brother Meelo, and my baby brother Rohan. Hmmm. Now that I think about it I should warn you. Ikki is a bundle of energy and talks a mile a minute. Meelo is... um… he’s just, well, gross.”  
I visibly retract from her when she mentions her brother.  
“But, I’m sure my mom and dad have warned them to be on their best behavior around you so don’t worry okay. Will you give us a chance?” She asks pleadingly.  
“I’ll try.” It’s the best I can offer right now. My pulse has slowed down a bit, but I wouldn’t say that I was feeling calm. We start walking again and after a minute or two I hear a bell ring out into the evening. That must be the dinner bell that Jinora mentioned.

Jinora and I enter the dining hall. I can hear quiet murmurs and shuffling clothes in what feels like a big space. I tense up because I thought I would be eating with just a handful of people not a room full. 

Once again Jinora picked up on my body language. She places her hand over mine on her shoulder. “Don’t panic. We’re going to a smaller room with just my family.” 

We walk through another door and Jinora stops.  
“We’re in the small dining room. There’s a rectangular table in the middle of the room.” She begins to layout the room for me. “The table sits in a cutout in the floor. There are cushions on the floor around the table instead of chairs. This way you can either sit with your legs tucked under you or you can hang them over the edge of the floor under the table. There is another door on the opposite wall from us that leads to the kitchen. You can sit anywhere you like.”

I use my cane to find the nearest cushion and feel for the edge of the floor and table. It seems exactly as Jinora described. Just as I’m settling down on the cushion I hear the door open and Tenzin’s voice greets me.

“I’m so happy to see you here Miss Sato. I would like to introduce my other children to you. This is Ikki, my youngest daughter.”

“Hi, I’m Ikki. My daddy says that you’re blind. Is that true? Have you always been blind? Is that your cane? Can I -” The little girl’s voice rapid fires a barrage of words at me so fast I have no idea how to respond.

“Ikki. What did we talk about?” Tenzin thankfully interrupts her.  
“Sorry daddy.” Her voice deflates.  
“Take a seat young lady. Sorry about that Asami. Anyway, this is my son Meelo.”  
“You’re pretty. Can I have some of your hair?” A little boys voice asks.  
“Meelo.” Tenzin admonishes.  
“We shall talk later beautiful woman.”  
“Ah, here’s Pema with my youngest child Rohan. He is only 1 and a half so he can’t say anything out of line.” I hear Tenzin move away.  
“Hello Miss Sato. I’m happy you decided to join us.” Pema greets from across the room. She came in from the opposite door. I can hear dishes being placed on the table and there’s movement around the room. 

The person placing the dishes has made their way to me and food is being placed on the table in front of me. Once the person completes their rounds of the table the room grows quiet.

“Will everyone please bow your heads for a quiet prayer of thanks?” Tenzin announces. I lower my head not sure what to expect. We definitely don’t pray before we eat in my father’s house.  
“Please enjoy your dinner.” He says a few moments later.

Jinora apparently chose to sit next to me because I hear her voice to my right explaining what’s for dinner. “There are two bowls and a small plate in front of you like a triangle. The bowl to your right has sesame bamboo mushroom soup in it. The bowl to your left has rice with steamed vegetables in it. The plate at the top of the triangle has ginger tofu wraps. Just beyond the plate is a cup of tea. Let me know if you need anything, okay.”

“Okay. Thank you.” This girl is very helpful. I’ve never had a purely vegetarian dinner before, but the food smells really good. I carefully move my hands across the surface of the table to find where everything is. I find my napkin and utensils and thankfully I have a choice between chopsticks and a fork. There is also a spoon, which I think I’ll stick with. I don’t want to make a mess with the rice bowl.

Pretty soon the sounds of eating has filled the room and I am tucked into my dinner as well. The food tastes as good as it smells and my nervousness is dramatically reduced. Dare I think that I actually feel normal.

I eat my fill and sit back to sip my tea. I hear the children talking amongst themselves quietly arguing about which game to play after dinner. I am an only child so the idea of having siblings is foreign to me. 

“Miss Sato, did you like the food? Did you have enough? Pema asks.  
“Yes. Everything was delicious. Please, everyone, call me Asami.”  
“Okay Asami.” They all chime in.  
“Children, take away the dishes please.” Tenzin orders. “Have a good evening Asami. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I nod in his direction.  
Chaos erupts as the kids run around the table collecting the dishes trying to outdo each other. Pema comes over to me while I’m getting up from the floor.  
“Asami may I escort you somewhere?”  
“Um, sure. What time is it?” I ask her as I take her arm.  
“A few minutes after seven.” She tells me and we start walking.  
“I guess I should go back to my room. I didn’t unpack earlier and I should do that if I want to sleep on the bed tonight.” I hear Pema chuckle lightly.

Pema drops me off at the door to my room. “Do you need anything Asami before I go?”  
“No. I think I’ll be okay.”  
“Okay then. I’ll send Jinora for you for breakfast. Have a good night.”  
“Good night Pema.”

I turn into the room and start unpacking the bags on the bed. I place my clothes in the dresser drawers and a few small items on its top. After I’m done I make my way to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Back in the room I settle on the bed that is not as cushy as my bed at home but still comfortable enough. I lie back and think about my day. Today was quite eventful between coming here, my breakdown with Tenzin, and dinner with the family. I’m feeling drained and drift off to sleep faster than expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think in the comments.


	3. There's Still Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Asami to start thinking about her future.

Over the next several days I develop a routine on the island. The morning bell wakes me up and I get ready for the day. Jinora shows up to escort me to breakfast and afterwards I follow her as she does her chores and even help a little. She goes to the vegetable garden and picks the ripened veggies. I mostly hold the basket. Then we go through the women’s dorm and collect dirty towels and give out clean ones. I push the cart down the hall for her. After that we get cleaned up and head to lunch. 

I noticed they started leaving the door to the private room open. I can tell because the noise from the larger dining area is clear instead of muted when the door is closed. Ikki and Meelo are their usual energetic selves and I’m learning to be more comfortable around them. 

After lunch I either sit in the library with Jinora, who I’ve learned is a bookworm, or sit in the common room of the dorm and listen to the radio. Pema introduced me to a station that broadcasts old radio soap operas. So far my favorite is about a female private detective. 

Each day, before dinner, I go to Tenzin’s office and talk with him. Sometimes he just asks about my day. Other times we talk about my feelings regarding my situation. I’m in Tenzin’s office and I wonder what we’ll talk about today.

“How are you doing today Asami?” He starts.  
“I’m okay. How are you?” It seems rude not to return the question.  
“I’m good. Thank you for asking.” I hear him sit down in the chair across from me. “I would like to talk about your plans for your future if that’s okay.”  
“Uh okay.”   
“I understand you were in college and withdrew after your accident. Do you plan to return next semester?”  
“No.”  
“Why not? You father said you are a genius and an engineering prodigy. He also told me you were an excellent student studying engineering and business. Is that correct?”  
“Yes, I was going to double major and work with my dad and one day run the company he built, but that’s all in the past. I don’t know what I’m going to do now.” My heart is heavy just thinking about what my life was going to be before the accident.  
“Why can’t you continue on that path?”  
“I’m blind now. Everything has changed for me.”  
“Are you not as smart as you were before the accident?”  
“Of course I am.”   
“Is your genius stifled by your blindness?”  
“No.”  
“Then why can’t you continue your plan?”  
“Well…”  
“Yes.” He prods.  
“The material is complicated and I don’t even know if the math I would need can be represented in braille. Not to mention I would need to go to class on campus. Have you been to Republic City University? The campus is huge and it was daunting when I could see.” I’m up and pacing because my thoughts are racing around my head. “How would I get around now? Besides, even if none of that were an issue, there is still the problem of designing and building things. How does a blind person take apart an engine and put it back together? How can I expect people to respect and listen to me? I can’t run a company like that.”  
“How about we tackle your concerns one a time so they won’t seem so formidable?”  
“Tenzin you have helped me a lot since I arrived here and I’m thankful, but I think you are overreaching a bit here.”  
“Prove it.” He utters.

I can’t believe my ears. I physically shake my head trying to reject the words. Those are my father’s words. He would say them to me when I would get stuck on an idea and said it couldn’t be done. I didn’t know when I was younger that you can’t prove a negative. So I would keep working at it and eventually find a way to make my idea work. He would beam a knowing smile at me when I presented my results to him. As I got older I realized what he was doing, but I accepted his challenge anyway. The man was a firm believer that nothing was impossible. He taught me to believe the same.

“Okay, I’m listening.” I sit down in the chair again to listen.  
“First, you said the materials are too complicated. I did some research and found that there are blind people in many professions that require high levels of math. There are engineers, programmers, even physicists. What do you think of that?”  
“Oh. I - I didn’t know.” I’m shocked.  
“Your next concern was getting around on campus. I guessed that would be an issue for you so I looked into that too. You can check with the Office for Disabled Students on campus about the types of services they can offer you. You can continue to take your mobility sessions to learn how to get around. There is also the option of a guide dog if you’re interested.”  
“I don’t know Tenzin.” I was beginning to feel overwhelmed.  
“I’m just laying out some of your options. You have valid concerns. The world is a scary place and can be more so when you can’t see. You are depressed because you think your dreams are unattainable. I want you to know that isn’t true. You can still finish college and run your father’s company. Your path may be different than the one you planned and it may take longer, but it’s doable.”  
I haven’t cried since my first day here, but I’m crying now. I can’t believe what he just told me. I miss tinkering around in the workshop so much. I would get a rush after working on a car engine and have it come to life on the test track. I had mourned the loss of my passion and now this monk is telling me I can have my life back. That it was never gone just changed. My emotions are all over the place right now. I’m relieved that I have hope again. I’m angry that I wasted so much time. I’m scared thinking about all the things that I have to do. I can’t even express myself to Tenzin. So, he hands me a handkerchief again and pats my shoulder while I crumble into an emotional puddle of tears.

After dinner I sit in the common room with Jinora. She says there is an arena football game on tonight and someone she knows is playing. Her enthusiasm for the game is contagious and I catch myself being engrossed in the game. I didn’t know Republic City had a women’s league arena football team. According to Jinora the league is fairly new but popular and teams are popping up in major cities around the world. I guess today is “tell Asami everything she doesn’t know” day. The team we are cheering for, the Republic City Wild Cats, is dominating the visiting Harbor Town Sharks.

I finished my nightly routine after the game and am lying in bed. Tenzin’s words are echoing around in my head. When I stopped crying in his office he said he would help me take one step at a time. It was all so exciting at the time, but now I wonder if I can do any of it. Yes I’m smart and capable, but I’m also scared shitless if I’m being honest with myself. Maybe I’ll just keep following Jinora around and help with her chores. I make myself chuckle with that mental image.


	4. Someone New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone new comes to the island and Asami is coerced out of her bubble.

It’s late morning and I’m sitting on a bench in one of the gazebos enjoying the fresh air and the sounds of the island. The ocean waves are crashing against the rocks below and the seagulls are flying around making their bird calls. I hear the ferry sound its horn to announce its arrival and I make note of how relaxed I feel. Maybe the dense fog I’ve been trapped in since the accident is beginning to lift.

I hear the kids running around being their usual energetic selves, but there is an extra voice laughing and shouting with them. The fourth voice is female and I haven’t heard it before. Their voices are getting close and before I know it Jinora is calling out to me. 

“Asami! Korra come meet Asami.” So the new voice belongs to Korra. I hear them approach me so I stand from the bench.   
“Asami, this is Korra.” Jinora begins.  
“She’s like our big sister.” Ikki chimes in.  
“She’s the running back -” Jinora tries to continue.  
“The best running back!” Meelo enthusiastically adds.  
“Thanks bud.” I hear Korra say.  
“Korra, this is Asami. She’s staying here for a little while.” Jinora finishes.  
“Asami is blind but she’s nice and she gave me this hair ribbon see.” Ikki tells Korra.  
“She’s my beautiful woman.” Meelo coos and grabs my hand.

I am so embarrassed right now. I didn’t want Ikki to announce my blindness to this stranger even though my white stick probably did that anyway. Then Meelo insists on calling me “beautiful woman” and making me blush. It’s silly, but he is the only person to comment on my looks since the accident. Though I don’t think I’m vain, I am aware that my looks caught the attention of both men and women. I would be lying if I said I didn’t use my good looks to get out of a speeding ticket or two in the past. 

Before the kids could make this introduction any worse I hear a loud rumble close to me.  
“Sorry.” Korra’s voice is sheepish.  
“ROAR! I’m a hungry monster! Feed me! ROAR!” Meelo starts yelling as he runs off.  
“Meelo don’t scare the visitors!” Jinora yells after Meelo and takes off too.  
“Bye!” Ikki chirps and then she’s off.

The silence is awkward since the kids left, so I decide to break it.   
“We should go.” I say and start making my way to the dining hall.   
“Um… yeah, right.” Korra follows along.

I’ve been getting around the buildings on the island fairly well and made it to the dining hall without any issues. Once we arrived I heard Tenzin and Pema greet Korra like she was another one of their kids.

“Hello Korra dear. I made your favorite.” Pema’s voice is warm and motherly.  
“Hey Pema. Oooh, cabbage wraps, you’re the best!” Korra happily replies.  
“You did well in your game last night. How are you feeling today?” Tenzin asks.  
“Thanks. I took some solid hits and I’m a little sore, but I should feel better after my massage.”   
“Kowa. Kowa. Kowa.” Rohan starts chanting.  
“Hey little dude.” I hear some movement then Rohan starts giggling madly.  
“Okay, that’s enough for now. Let’s prepare to eat.” Tenzin said.

Lunch went by quickly after that. Korra excused herself to get her massage and the kids helped Pema clear the table. I decided to go wander around the library. I run my hand along the spines of the books and wonder what each one is about. I also wonder if Jinora plans to read every book here. That girl has an insatiable appetite for books. I guess I was the same way growing up. I read mostly engineering books, but novels too. I really liked the classics and greek mythology. I know so many useless facts and tidbits from all the reading I’ve done that people would tell me I should try out for Jeopardy. 

“Asami, there you are. I was hoping to talk to you for a moment.” Tenzin said entering the library.  
“Is everything okay?” I ask.  
“Yes. Everything is fine. I was just reminded of one of our topics of discussion. I recall you saying you don’t really have any friends. With Korra here today I thought you might want to talk to her. Try to engage in conversation with someone new.”  
“What would I talk to her about?”  
“For starters Korra attends RCU. I’m sure you two could find some common ground. Besides, Korra is a kind person and is easy to talk to. Plus, you have the benefit of meeting someone new in a place where you are comfortable.”  
“I suppose.”  
“Great! After her massage she normally takes the kids to the cove to splash around. You should go with them.”  
“I’m not sure -”  
“Asami.” Tenzin places his hands on my shoulders. “We all have two lives. The second one begins when we realize we only have one.” He moved turning my shoulders to face the entrance. “You are young. You are alive. Go live.” With his last words he nudged me towards the door of the library.

As usual, Tenzin is right. I can’t stay in my bubble forever. I had come to this conclusion just last night and now I have a chance to take my first steps towards my new future. After all, the kids seem to adore Korra, even Rohan. They say kids are good judges of character. However I still don’t know who “they” are. I’m going to ask to join Korra and the kids at the cove. What’s the worst that could happen? Well, I could drown. Ugh. What am I getting myself into?

I’m walking along one of the paths working out how I’m going to talk to Korra about going with her and the kids to the cove when I hear Ikki callin out my name.

“Asami. Asami.” She doesn’t stop moving when she gets to me; she just prances around me in circles. “Korra is taking us to the cove to swim and play. You should come with us.”   
“Ikki you are making me dizzy.” I stick my arm out to stop her circles.  
“Oops. Sorry. Will you come with us?” The girl pleads.  
“Maybe I should ask Korra before I answer that.” I tell her.  
“Ask Korra what?” I was so distracted by Ikki that I didn’t hear Korra approaching.  
“I wanted to ask if I could tag along with you and the kids to the cove.”  
“Of course!” At least she sounded happy about me coming along. This might not be that bad.  
“We’ll wait for you to go change.” Korra said.  
“Oh. I was going to go like this.” Clearly I hadn’t thought about my clothes. I was wearing a pink cotton long sleeve blouse with a pair of grey capri pants and some tennis shoes. Mrs. Chiba had packed my clothes in full outfits with little braille labels so I would know what I was wearing.  
“That won’t do.” Korra said. “Um. I think I have another pair of boardshorts in my room. Do you have a t-shirt or tank top you can wear?”  
“Are you sure?”   
“Definitely.” She assures me. “Come on I’ll get those shorts so you can change.”

We went to the women’s dorms and Korra found a pair of shorts for me to wear. In my room I changed into the shorts and a t-shirt like she suggested. I learned that her waist is a little bigger than mine but I was able to use the drawstrings to cinch the shorts so they would stay on my hips. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and hoped that I looked okay. Everyone was waiting for me outside of the dorm.

“Okay, I’m ready.” I announce as I walk outside.  
“Finally. Let’s go.” Meelo takes off running like normal.  
“Last one there is a rotten egg!” Ikki challenges as she takes off too. I have no idea where those two get their unending energy from, but if I could bottle it I would be rich. Well, I’m already rich so I guess I would be filthy rich.  
“I’ll keep an eye on those two. Korra why don’t you show Asami the way?” Jinora suggests.  
“Yeah, I guess.” Korra answers quietly.  
We stand in silence again for a moment. I’m about to speak when Korra starts talking.  
“Um, so I have no idea what to do and um, I don’t want to do the wrong thing so… um… yeah.”  
“It’s okay. I’m glad you said something.” I can’t help the slight smile on my face. “Just let me hold your arm and we can walk together.”  
“I can do that.” She sounds relieved.   
I hold out my hand and soon enough I’m grabbing onto her bare arm. WOW! I learn two things immediately. First, Korra has some serious muscles, at least in her arms. Second, she is a tad bit shorter than me. We start walking to the cove and I can feel Korra’s stiffness. She is nervous enough for the both of us.   
“Hey Korra.”  
“Hmm?”  
“You’re stiff as a board and walking like a zombie. Relax.”  
She seems to breathe for the first time and finally relax.  
“Sorry.” She says.  
“Don’t be. I get it. I’m feeling nervous too.” Why did I just say that?  
“Why are you nervous?”  
“I’m blind, away from home, and going to a cove with a stranger.” I have developed verbal diarrhea around this girl.  
She laughs. “If it makes you feel any better I have no intention of letting anything bad happen to you while you’re with me.”  
Once again I find myself smiling. I haven’t smiled in so long it feels foreign. For reasons unknown I believe her. Okay, maybe it’s the muscles. Sue me.  
“Do you mind if I ask you a question?”  
“Not at all. Shoot.”  
“How do you know Tenzin and his family?”  
“Well, I grew up in the Southern Water Tribe and was close to Tenzin’s mother. Katara is like a grandmother to me. Anyway, I wanted to leave the tribe and expand my horizons. So, Katara talked to Tenzin and my parents and everyone agreed that I could move here to Republic City to finish high school and Tenzin would be my guardian. That’s why I have my own room here.”  
“That was a huge move. Weren’t you scared?”  
“Heh. I was terrified, but I wanted to see, do, and learn more than the tribe had to offer. It was Republic City or bust for me.” She shrugs. “What about you. What brings you to the island?”  
“Mmm. I have been having some… problems and my father thought Tenzin could help me.” Was that too vague?  
“I know all about having problems and needing Tenzin’s help.”   
“Really? How so?” I hope I’m not being nosy.  
“Moving here was harder on me than I expected. I acted out, which means I got into a lot of fights. Tenzin helped me learn to stay calm and use my words instead of my fists. If it wasn’t for him I would probably be back in the south or in jail for seriously hurting someone.”  
“I glad he was able to help you.” I mean that.  
“I’m sure he can help you too. Just don’t get too confused by his Confucius quotes.” We both laugh at that.


	5. A Calming Presence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami spends time with her new acquaintance.

So far Tenzin has been right about everything, including Korra. She was very easy to talk to and had me smiling and laughing in no time. We talked all the way down to the cove at the base of the island. It’s located away from the sandy shore where the ferry docks, so we were out of sight from the visitors. There was a grassy slope at the back of the garden that went straight to it. Korra explained that the grass gave way to a small sand beach then a gentle decline into the water that was maybe 6 feet at it’s deepest point. The cove was a rough round shape with a very narrow entrance directly opposite the beach. I asked her about fish and other sea life in the water and she said only small fish and little crabs are in here and mostly around the rocks. That was a relief. She also explained that because of the surrounding cliffs the best time to come here was after lunch when the sun was directly overhead. Otherwise it would be too cool for comfort.

Korra led me to a spot where there was a big rock a little back from the water’s edge. This was where everyone put their shoes and towels. I decided to kick back for a bit to enjoy the sounds of the kids playing around with Korra. They seemed to need to burn off some energy. As soon as Korra was sure I was okay with my spot I hear her yell, “Cannonball!” There was splashing and kids screaming echoing off the rock walls.

I’m enjoying the warmth of the sun when I hear Meelo shout.  
“I’m a shark and I’m going to get you!”  
“You can’t be a shark.” Ikki retorts.  
“Why not?” Meelo whines.  
“Because I’m the shark and I’m going to get you all!” Korra growls. There is splashing and screaming again.  
“Beautiful woman save us!” Meelo yells for me. Suddenly all three of the kids are huddled around me laughing.  
As fast as they surrounded me they were running off back into the water.  
“Come join us.” Jinora said while the other two ran off.  
“Swim with us beautiful woman.” Meelo calls.  
“Don’t be a beach bum.” Korra adds.  
I smile at their antics and get up.  
“Fine. I’ll swim too.” I have my hands out a little in front of me and begin to move forward. “A little help here please.”

“Just keep walking.” Jinora says. Her voice is has moved quite far since she spoke last. This throws me off. I’m suddenly very nervous. What if this is a trick? What can I do? I’ve taken a few steps away from the rock and feel completely lost.

“Hey. You’re okay. I’m right here.” Korra’s voice is close and gentle. I feel her hand touch mine and I grab onto it. The hand gently pulls me and I take slow steps. Soon I feel water at my toes and start to relax. The deeper the water gets the better it feels. It’s warm and inviting.  
“Do you know how to float?” Korra asks.  
“Yes.”  
“Cool. Why don’t we kick back and float around for a bit while they wear themselves out?”  
“Good idea.” I tell her.

We float around for a while after that. Every now and then Korra stands up to referee the kids or to adjust our position if we get too close to an edge. Korra’s hand never tries to pull away or let go of mine and I’m grateful. It seems silly but it feels comforting to know that she meant what she said on the way here about not letting anything bad happen to me. 

“Alright my little sea prunes, it’s time to get back.” Korra says while standing up.  
“Aww. Do we have to?” Ikki groans.  
“Five more minutes.” Meelo begs.  
“Nope. You’re completely shriveled and you need to get cleaned up for dinner.”  
I stand up too and Korra walks us to the shore. I hadn’t realised how long we’ve been out here. Korra was right about the temperature change. As soon as I was out of the warm water I could feel the cool air on my skin. Several steps in and she drops my hand. I’m then enveloped in a big warm towel.  
“Sit on the rock and I’ll help with your shoes.” She tells me as she guides me sit on the rock.  
“I’m not an invalid. I can put my shoes on.” I deadpan.  
“I know. It’s just your feet are covered in sand and if you don’t get it all off before you put your shoes on it’s very uncomfortable. Trust me.” Her voice has moved down and I feel her hand on the back of my lower leg just above my ankle. I let her lift my foot up and feel water being poured on it. Then a towel dries it and my shoe is put on. My foot is lowered and the process is repeated with the other foot.  
“There. Now you can put your best foot forward. Pun intended.” She chuckles at her joke and one of the kids groan. I can’t tell which one.  
“Alright, alright. Let’s go.” She says.

I am holding onto Korra’s arm again and the kids are a lot less rambunctious going up the incline to the top of the island.  
“I think your plan is working.” I speak quietly.  
“It does the trick every time. Meelo will be out before dinner is over.” Korra whispers back.  
“How often do you do this?”  
“As often as I can. I get busy sometimes, but I like coming here and having fun with them. Plus, it gives Tenzin and Pema a break. Me and the guys will even have them over every now and then and do stuff with them like go see a movie or hang out at the park.”  
“Wow. You really are like a big sister. Who are the guys?” Korra is nicer than I thought.  
“Oh. Mako and Bolin. They’re brothers and we share an apartment just off RCU campus.”  
“Wait. You room with two guys? Are the three of you… together?” This girl is blowing my mind.  
“What?! No! Ugh! I’ve known the guys since high school. They were my first friends when I moved here. Well, actually Bo was my first friend. Mako… that’s a story all by itself. Anyway, when I started going to RCU I had a problem getting to class on time because of living on the island and needing to catch the ferry. The guys already had an apartment and I often crashed at their place. Eventually we decided to just get a place together.”  
“That’s… different.” I really didn’t know what to say to that.  
“True, but it works. We should get cleaned up. The dinner bell will ring soon. Let me take your towel.” Her arm loosed from my grip and the towel was removed from my shoulders. “I’ll take these to the laundry and I’ll see you at dinner.”  
“Wait, Korra.” I paid no attention to where we were walking because of our conversation and now I have no idea where I am.  
“Huh?”  
“Where am I?”  
“Crap. Sorry. You’re just in front of the temple facing the direction of the dorm. Uh, are you good from here?”  
“Okay. Yeah. I’m good. Thanks.”  
“No problem. See you in a bit.” I hear her voice and footsteps retreat.

No sooner had I finished getting cleaned up from the beach did the dinner bell ring. I made my way to the same spot I’ve sat at since the first night I was here and true to form Jinora was at my side giving the layout of my food. Dinner was fairly quiet tonight because Thing One and Thing Two was exhausted from their day at the beach. As predicted, Meelo was out before the meal was over. Tenzin excused himself from the table to put Meelo to bed and Jinora walked Ikki to their shared room to do the same. Pema took Rohan leaving Korra and I at the table. 

“I’ll clear the table.” Korra announces.  
“I’ll help.” I add.  
“Really?” She asks.  
“...” I can’t help.  
“Let’s see.” I hear a tapping noise. “Can you wash dishes?” She asks me.  
“Yes.”  
“Okay then. You’re on clean dish duty.” She seems so happy at the idea.  
“Okay then. Show me the way.” I stand up from the table and put my hand out. Her muscled arm brushes my hand and leads me to the kitchen.  
“Here’s the sink, soap, and dish towel.” She explains as she guides my hands to things. “If you’ll get the water ready, I’ll start bringing the dishes to you.”  
“Sure.”

Turns out Korra and I made a good team. She brought the dishes in and placed them in the water I’d prepared. After I cleaned them and stacked them on the side she dried them and put them away. When Pema came into the kitchen to begin cleaning we were just finishing.

“Girls.” Pema sounds surprised.  
“Hey Pema. Everything is already done. I even put a pot of water on the stove for your evening tea.” Korra seems to have thought of everything.  
“You didn’t have to do all of this. Thank you both so much.”  
“You always take care of everyone and I thought I - I mean we could do a little something for you.” Korra tells her.  
“Come on Asami. Let’s give Pema some peace and quiet.” Korra’s arm slips into my hand and we leave the dining hall.

“So what do you normally do in the evenings?” Korra asks me.  
“I either listen to the radio or play chess with Jinora. What do you do when you’re here?”  
“I like to practice my forms in the training area or go down to the beach and walk along the shore. Sometimes I find starfish and I toss them back in the water. Once I stumbled across a sea turtle nest. I checked on them everyday, but I missed it when they hatched.”  
“You don’t like to stay still do you?”  
“Nah. Not my style. Since I can’t play chess do you want to walk the beach with me?”  
“Sure.” 

Korra walks us down the path to the lower part of the island. There is a nice breeze in the air and the lapping of the water against the shore gets louder as we walk. Once the ground levels off again I make out a knocking sound that’s in time with the waves.

“Korra, what’s that knocking noise?”  
“That’s a small canoe tied up under the pier bumping one of the pilings.”

We walk along the beach away from the knocking sound. The evening feels so calm. Maybe it’s me that is calm for a change. I’m not worried or stressed out about anything right this moment and it’s a relief. Korra may be very energetic but she definitely has a calming presence.

“What kind of stuff do you normally do at home?” She asks me.  
“Wallow, sulk, and mope.” I quietly reply.  
“Huh? Why would you do that?” She stops walking and turns to face me.  
“Earlier this year I was in a car accident and as a result I lost my sight. I’ve been angry and depressed since. That’s why I’m here. That’s what Tenzin is helping me with.” Well Asami, why don’t you just tell the girl your whole life story while you’re at it.  
“Shit.” She exhales the word. “I can’t even begin to imagine what you’re going through. At least you’re here and you’re getting better. Wait. You are getting better right?”  
Her concern is endearing. “Yes. I can honestly say that I am getting better. I worry though about leaving here.”  
“Why.” We resume walking.  
“Things aren’t hard here. Life is slower and I feel comfortable. I can walk around freely and don’t have to feel scared. It’s quiet here as opposed to all the noise of the city.” I’ve let go of Korra’s arm and am hugging myself.  
“The city was scary for me too when I first moved here. I’d never seen so many people and the buildings were huge. I nearly got run over several times because I didn’t know about traffic lights and crosswalks. Oh man, I was a mess. Don’t get me started on the noise. I could barely think for all the noise.”  
“What did you do?” I can’t believe she has a clue as to what I feel.  
“I learned to adapt. I met the guys and they taught me a lot about getting around the city. Tenzin taught me how to focus and stay calm. Pema taught me that some cookies and a hug can make even the worst day better.” Korra had started rubbing my arms gently while she was talking and her words helped me feel better about facing the real world.  
“Thank you Korra.”  
“No problem. Besides, I told you that nothing bad would happen to you when you’re with me and that includes feeling bad.” I couldn’t help smiling again.  
“Ha! You’re smiling again. Mission accomplished.”  
“You are something else.” I tell her.  
“Something good or something bad?”  
“Definitely something good.”  
“Yes!” My smile is even bigger at her excitement.  
“Okay. Your turn. What do you normally do when you’re not here?” We start walking again.  
“On a night like this I would probably take my bike out for a joy ride.”  
“Do you mean bicycle or motorcycle?” I wonder.  
“Motorcycle.”  
“What kind do you have?”  
“It’s an AS1.”  
“That’s one hell of a bike!” I didn’t expect that.  
“You know motorcycles?” We stop walking again.  
“Well yeah, considering I designed that one.” Korra pulls out of my grip.  
“What?”  
“AS stands for Asami Sato and the 1 is because that was my first production bike.”  
“Oh my spirits! I knew I recognized you from somewhere! I saw you on the cover of a motorcycle magazine a couple of years ago. Do you have any idea how awesome you are?! This is amazing. I’ve been hanging out with Asami Sato all day. Wait until I tell the guys. They are going to flip!” To describe Korra as excited right now would be a gross understatement.  
“Okay calm down.” I reach out to grab a hold of her before she explodes. I never thought I would have this effect on someone.  
“I know I’m totally fangirling you right now, but you are the reason I decided to go to college. I saw you on the cover of that magazine and you weren’t half naked trying to sell a bike. You were the engineer behind this badass machine that people were drooling over. I figured if you could do that then I could go to college and get a degree and be something more than what people expected of some girl from the Southern Water Tribe. Whoa. I’m dizzy. I need to sit down.”  
“That’s a good idea.” We sit down together on the sand.  
“This is the best day ever.” She mutters.  
“This is so weird. My dad had to practically bribe me to do that article. I remember him saying that I could inspire the next generation of engineers if I did it. I thought he was just saying that to try to boost my ego. Now I meet you and hear that I inspired you to go to college just when I’ve quit.”  
“What? You can’t quit.” Korra gasps.  
“I already did.”  
“Then go back.” She is adamant.  
“I don’t know if I can.”  
“Why not?” I hear her stand up.  
“I’m blind now.” My voice is just a whisper.  
“So. I’m short.” She counters.  
“What?” My head jerks up towards her.  
“Exactly!” Strong hands grab my upper arms and lift me to a standing position. “Listen up. You are Asami Fucking Sato! You are a genius engineer. You still have a lot to contribute to this world and whether you can see or not you are an awesome person. And if you need someone to remind you of these truths then you’ve got me. I know I can’t put your life back together, but I can wrap duct tape around it until you can fix it yourself.” She spoke with a gravity that was undeniable.  
“Korra…” I didn’t know what to say. Here was someone I had only met earlier today and she somehow had complete faith in me. I know my father knows what I’m capable of and Tenzin sounded sure of my intelligence, but this girl took it to a new level when she said she would remind me if I needed it. She is the only person to say she would hold my hand until I was ready to let go. Everyone else has kept their distance.  
“Uh oh. That was too much. I’m sorry. I get overzealous sometimes. I’m so sorry.” She let go of my arms and I snap out of my internal dialogue.  
“You don’t need to apologize. I was just shocked. Did you mean what you said?” I need her to mean it more than I should.  
“Absolutely. Every word.” Her voice is dripping with sincerity.  
“Okay.” I can do this. After all I’m Asami Fucking Sato.  
“Are you ready to head back? It’s getting late.”  
“Yeah.” My hand finds her arm and we start walking back to the dorm.  
“Does this mean I can have your autograph?” She asks me.  
I can’t help but laugh at her question.  
“Hey. I’m serious.”  
“Sure.” I assure her and continue to chuckle at the thought.

We say goodnight to each other and I lie in my bed and begin to formulate a plan to reclaim my life.


	6. Moving Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami talks to Tenzin about getting her life back on track.

The next morning at breakfast the kids were back to their boisterous selves. Apparently Korra and Meelo were having a biscuit eating contest. Other than an upset stomach I’m not sure what the winner gets. Ikki decided to regale her parents with a moment by moment retelling of our afternoon yesterday since she was too tired to tell them about it last night. I swear she recited the whole affair in one breath. 

When everyone began to part ways after breakfast I decided that now was as good a time as any to start putting my life back together.  
“Tenzin.” I call out.  
“Yes Asami.”  
“I was wondering if we could talk.”  
“Of course. It’s a beautiful day today. Why don’t we talk in the garden instead of my office?” He suggests.  
“That sounds nice.”  
“Please give me a few minutes. I’ll be there shortly.” I hear his robes swish as he walks away.

I walk out of the dining hall and head towards the garden.  
“Asami!” Korra yells for me.  
“Korra?” I stop and turned towards the sound of her running to catch up with me.  
“Hey.” She huffs when she’s near.  
“Hey.” I say back.  
“Um, I want to let you know that I meant every word I said last night. I have to head back to the city today, but you can get my number from Jinora. That is if you want to. I mean I’m sure you’ll be busy with everything so it’s no big, but maybe we could hang out or uh -”  
I decide to stop her rambling before she talks herself into a hole. “Thank you Korra. I’ll get your number and call you when I get back to the city. Okay?”  
“Yeah, okay.” The horn of the ferry sounds.  
“Oh crap, that’s my ride. I gotta go before I miss the ferry and am late for practice. See ya later Badass.” And just like that she’s gone.

I turn and continue walking to the garden. Once in the garden I decide to sit on a stone bench and wait for Tenzin. The morning air on the island is wonderful. I don’t need to but I still close my eyes and absorb the world around me. There is a slight breeze and it ruffles the flowers and my hair. The sun is warming to my pale skin, but it’s not yet hot at this time of day. I can’t really hear the ocean waves in this spot, but I hear the birds squawking. I only hear those types of bird calls when I’m near the water. The serenity of this place lends itself to being inhabited by monks.

“Asami.” Tenzin says my name and I open my eyes. “Do you still wish to speak with me?”  
“Yes.”  
“You seemed rather peaceful sitting there. I didn’t want to interrupt.” He explains.  
“Mm, yes I was just enjoying the atmosphere here. I really do want to talk to you though.”  
“I enjoy this spot as well.” I felt him settle on the bench next to me. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”  
“I want to get back to my life. I want to not be scared and anxious all of the time. I want to go back to school and finish my degrees. Will you help me Tenzin?” I lay it all out there.  
“Tell me, what changed since the last time we talked.”  
“Honestly, it was talking to Korra that got me thinking I could do this.”  
“I figured as much. That girl has a way with people. She can even get Meelo to clean his room when his mother and I can’t. Pema had hoped she would be a good influence on you.”  
“Is that why you practically pushed me towards her?” I don’t know if I feel manipulated or happy about this information.  
“I merely hoped that you would have a good time. Anything else would be an added benefit.” Tenzin is sneakier than I thought.  
“She gave me a very good pep talk last night.”  
“Really? If you feel comfortable telling me I would like to know what she said to motivate you.” Tenzin sounded genuinely interested.  
“She told me that I inspired her to go to college and that I had a lot left to offer the world. There were some other choice words added, but I’ll spare you those.” Tenzin quietly laughed.  
“She’s right.”  
“I know.”  
“I have to ask. Are you doing this because you want to or because you feel obligated? I can only guess to the amount of pressure you may feel because of your last name.”  
I take a deep breath and slowly let it out. “My name has always been a double edged sword. I have had to deal with people’s preconceived notions of me for as long as I can remember. But this isn’t about my name, or my father, or even Korra. Tenzin I have so many ideas swirling around in my head; so many things I want to do. This need I have to build and create is why I wanted to be an engineer in the first place. I have to try to make this happen.” I need Tenzin to know how bad I want this.  
“Very well. I have a feeling you have a plan. Where would you like to start?”  
I will need to remember to send Tenzin the biggest fruit basket I can order.  
“I’m not exactly sure. That’s where you come in. I know I want to be independent again and I want to go back to school, but I don’t know the exact steps to make that happen.” I admit my planning last night fell woefully short.  
“I’ll make some phone calls and gather some information. Let’s talk again later when I have some answers for you.”  
“Okay.” I hear Tenzin leave and finally breathe normally again. I was nervous for that whole conversation. I kept thinking that Tenzin might not think I’m ready. What would I have done then? It doesn’t matter. He’s going to help me. All I have to do now is wait for him to get back to me. Easier said than done.

I am so nervous and excited I don’t know what to do with myself. If I didn’t know before I definitely know now that patience is not a virtue of mine. I try to regain the moment of peace I had before my conversation with Tenzin, but my mind is racing too much to relax. Before, when I felt like this, I would have gone to my workshop and tinker, or let off some steam on the punching bag, or gone for a nice drive. But I can’t do any of those things and I don’t know if I ever will again. So, I do what I can and that is walk. I start with a couple of laps around the garden then move to the intersecting paths that lead me to each of the buildings. I finally head back to the dorm to hang out in the common room and listen to the radio. Maybe one of my favorite soaps is on.

“Asami. Asami.” Jinora is calling my name and shaking my shoulder.  
“Huh, what?”  
“Where were you just now? I called your name several times.” The girl sounds worried.  
“I must have zoned out. Sorry.” I let out a yawn and stretch my stiff body.  
“You missed lunch. I’ve been looking for you but no one could tell me where you were.”  
“Wait. I missed lunch? What time is it?”  
“It’s almost one.”  
“Whoa.” Time flies when you’re zoned out.  
“Are you hungry? We could go to the kitchen and I could make you a sandwich.” She makes an offer that I won’t refuse.  
“Yeah.”

“Are you going to eat that?” Jinora’s voice breaks through the silence. I realize that I’m sitting at a table, unlike the dining table, with a piece of sandwich in my hands. I tune in to my surroundings and hear a slow dripping noise to my far right and the hum of a refrigerator somewhere behind me. Clearly, I’m in the kitchen with the sandwich that Jinora offered. I must have zoned out again.  
“Asami, are you okay? You’re very distracted today.” She asks me.  
“I talked to your dad after breakfast today and I’m waiting to hear back from him about some things. The waiting is nerve wrecking.” I admit to her.  
“Why don’t you finish your sandwich and after we’ll go look for him? Maybe he’ll have some answers for you by then.”  
“Thanks Jinora.” I quickly finish the sandwich and grab my cane so we could go.  
“Promise me something.” Jinora prompts while we’re walking towards Tenzin’s office.  
“What?”  
“Promise me you won’t walk off the edge of the island while you’re zoned out. Wait. No. Promise me you won’t walk off the edge of the island period.”  
“I promise.”

We walk into Tenzin’s office just as he’s finishing a phone call.  
“Thank you very much Tian. I will call you later to make the arrangements.” I hear the phone being returned to it’s cradle. “Ah, you two have impeccable timing. I was just going to come look for you Asami.” Tenzin’s chair is moved and I hear him moving from behind his desk.  
“I’ll see you later Asami. See ya daddy.” Jinora leaves us alone closing the door behind her.  
“I’ve had a very productive and educational day since we last spoke.” Tenzin begins.  
“I am on pins and needles Tenzin. Please tell me you have good news.”  
“Yes, I have good news and a plan, provided you agree.” I let out a breath and nod for him to continue.  
“First, I called your dad and got the contact information for the trainers he originally hired for you. I called them and asked if they could continue working with you and they both agreed. Second, I called the disability office at the university and asked about resources available to blind students and they gave me a list. They also told me about the registration process that you should follow when you plan to return. Speaking of your return to school, that call I was on, when you came in, was to a colleague of mine at the university. I generally explained your situation without being specific and asked if you would be allowed to pick up where you left off. He suggested that you speak with your professors and career counselor, but considering your previous coursework and extenuating circumstances, he would be surprised if they didn’t let you back in the program.”

I sat there listening to Tenzin and letting it all soak in. This is exactly what I wanted. I could go back. I wasn’t going to be an old hag with a house full of cats that sat in a rocking chair and knitted afghans all day.

“Asami. Did you hear me?”  
“I don’t know what to say.” My voice is shaky.  
“Isn’t this what you wanted?”  
“Absolutely!” I answer him with enthusiasm.  
“Good. Now you need to decide how vigorous you want you schedule to be.”  
“Very. I need to be able to go back when the semester starts. I’ve wasted enough time.”  
“I had a feeling you would say that. May I suggest mobility and orientation training in the mornings and your braille tutor in the afternoon. Since this means that you are going home I would also like to suggest that you keep the schedule you’ve developed here. I think it will help considering how hard you are going to be working.”  
“I hadn’t thought of that. Going home I mean. Um, can I still talk to you after I leave?” Uh oh, maybe I should slow down. I mean things are good for me here. I feel better now than I have in months; all thanks to Tenzin and his family. Ugh. I’m getting a headache.  
“Of course we can still talk. You can come by whenever you want to. It’s a short ferry ride between here and the city.” I must have a disturbed look on my face because Tenzin raises his offer. “I have a better idea. Since I’m in my office every evening before dinner you can call me then if you want to talk.”  
“Okay. That sounds doable.” I feel a little better knowing I have a safety net.  
“Don’t forget Korra is in the city and I’m sure she would like to hear from you.”  
Wait. Korra is in the city and she told me to get her number from Jinora. I said I would call her. I have no good reason to be this excited about someone I barely know, but I can’t help it.  
“That last idea seemed to improve your mood quickly.” I can hear the smile on his face. I hope I’m not blushing.  
I clear my throat. “So when do I start?”  
“I need to call and confirm the schedule with your trainer and tutor, but I’m confident you can start in a day or two.”  
“Oh. Okay. I guess I should pack my things then.” I stand to leave the office.  
“One last thing Asami. As I said before, I spoke with your father this morning. I really think you two should talk so I extended a dinner invitation to him for tonight. He’ll be here this evening. Come back here at our normal time and you two can hopefully begin to put your relationship back on track.”  
“Hah. My father is a very stubborn man.”  
“I hear he has an equally stubborn daughter.” Tenzin replies.  
The truth stings a little. “I’ll be here.” With that I walk out of the office and back to the dorm to pack my things.


	7. Father of Mine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami faces her first hurdle, a.k.a her father, on her way to reclaiming her life.

Some time later there’s a knock at the door to my room.  
“Who is it?” I ask.  
“It’s Jinora.”  
“You can come in Jinora.” I hear the door open.  
“Hey Asami.” Jinora greets me. I’m sitting in the desk chair and I hear her flop on the bed. “I thought I should let you know that your dad is here. At least I think that was your dad with my dad.”  
“Was he a portly man with black hair and gold glasses wearing an expensive suit?” That pretty much sums up my dad.  
“Yep.”  
“Then that’s my dad.”  
“Hey you packed your things. Did he come to get you? And why don’t you look happy about that? I thought you couldn’t wait to leave.” Jinora rapid fires at me.  
“Whoa Jin. You are starting to sound like Ikki.”  
“I resent that remark.” She huffs.  
“It’s just I don’t have a really good relationship with my dad. I mean we use to be close but we drifted apart somehow. It got worse after the accident.” This situation just sucks from every angle.  
“But you have a chance now to change that. You could try to get back to a good place with him right?” Jinora is optimism incarnate.  
“You’re right. Thanks.”  
“No problem.”  
“I guess I should head over to your dad’s office.” 

We both leave the room and I start to formulate what I’m going to say to my father. My emotions are all over the place so I need to get a hold of myself first and foremost. I’ve barely had any contact with him since the accident and those few times I was not very present in the moment. I don’t quite know what to expect from him. I’m walking into this blind, in more ways than one.

I’m just outside of Tenzin’s office and I hear the two of them talking.  
“I can’t thank you enough Tenzin. You have done what no one else was able to. You are a miracle worker.” My dad’s voice normally sounds very authoritative, but right now he sounds sincere.  
“Your daughter did all of the work. I can take no credit. She has done well here and I think with support she will continue to make progress. I hope you don’t expect her to be cured of her depression and anxiety.”  
“No, not at all. I just… You should have known her before. She was so energetic and carefree. There was a bright light within her. Then the accident happened and she changed. When I took her home it was like the light inside of her had been snuffed out. I was losing her more and more everyday. I called every surgeon, every specialist I could find but no one could give her back what was lost.” His voice was thick with emotion by this point so I decided to enter the room.  
“All I wanted was you dad.” I say to the last member of my family. I could smell his cologne and the lingering scent of cigar smoke.  
“I’ll give you two some time to talk.” Tenzin says as he leaves the room.  
“Sweetheart. I… I didn’t know what to do.”  
“Did you know that you haven’t touched me since the accident?”  
“I didn’t want to crowd you. You seemed so cagey when anyone got close to you.” He always has an excuse for everything.  
“That’s because I didn’t want specialists and therapists and a maid, I wanted my dad. Not the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, but the man who learned to play the piano just to play a duet with me. The man who spent an entire day combing through every storage box in the mansion with me looking for mom’s old jazz albums and then sat on the floor in the living room that night listening to them. I want the man who use to spend time with me working in the garage, not the one that buys me ever more expensive toys because he’s too busy for me, his only child and family left in this world.” My throat is so tight with emotion by now that I don’t even know if he can hear me anymore.  
“My sweet girl. I’m so sorry. I thought once you were older you wouldn’t want to be around me like that anymore. I thought you’d want to spend all of your free time with your friends doing what young people do.”  
“I don’t have any friends! Those girls only hang out with me because I pay for everything. Not a single one of them have bothered with me since the accident. The guy I was dating was just for show. He wanted to be seen with a Sato and I wanted to look like I had a life. How’s that for doing what young people do?” My tone has gone bitter and the anger is pouring out of me.  
“Asami. You are my greatest joy and I’m sorry if I haven’t shown you that lately. Please tell me we can fix this heartache between us.” He moved closer to me while he was talking.  
“I’m not your perfect daughter anymore. I will make mistakes and I might even fail every now and then.” I can’t stop myself from reaching out for him. He grabs my hand and slowly closes the gap between us like I’m going to bolt if he makes a sudden movement, which might not be far from the truth. Finally he hugs me. I’m stiff at first not knowing if I can trust this. I have wanted, no needed, this for so long.  
“I’m not perfect either and I will make mistakes too. Just know that you are still my sweet, brilliant, beautiful girl and I love you with all of my heart.” His arms have completely enclosed me and I relax into his embrace.  
“I love you too dad.” I mumble into his shoulder.

We stand there holding each other, healing our wounds for a few moments. He pulls back and gently wipes my face with his handkerchief.  
“Will we be okay?” He asks me.  
“I think we have a good chance.” I give him a small smile and pray that it shows just how thankful and hopeful I am.  
“I’ve missed your smile.” He cups my cheeks and I remember what his face looked like when he used to do this. I savor the moment.

Knock. Knock. “Asami. Hiroshi. Are you two okay in there? Dinner is ready if you would like to join us.” Tenzin calls through the door.  
“We’ll be right out.” My dad calls back. “Asami, after dinner would you like to come back with me or would you prefer I send Mr. Lee to pick you up tomorrow?” My dad asks me.  
“That depends. Are you driving the roadster tonight?” The roadster was his favorite car when he drove himself.  
“No dear. I was hopeful you would be willing to come back with me so I brought the Monarch. Mr. Lee said you rode in it without issue last time.”  
“Yeah. That works.” I tell him. “We shouldn’t keep Tenzin waiting.” With that we leave the office and join Tenzin in the hallway. The three of us walk to the dining hall together.

Dinner was eventful. Pema outdid herself with the food. My father employs a professionally trained chef and I would bet on Pema against him. Rohan decided that tonight he would wear his soup instead of eat it much to Pema and Tenzin’s dismay. The parents apologized profusely to my dad who waved them off by telling them an embarrassing baby story about me. Thing 1, aka Ikki, wanted to tell my father everything about the monk culture and started talking so fast the words blended into each other. That girl definitely has a career as the person who lists all of the side effects of a drug in commercials. Jinora had to promise to play a board game with her to get her to be quiet. While Pema had left to get Rohan cleaned and Tenzin was helping to clear away the dishes Thing 2, aka Meelo, decided to ask for my father’s permission to marry me. I nearly choked on my tea when I heard him. My dad tactfully let him down pointing out our age difference. Meelo left the dining hall after that but I don’t think he has given up.

After dinner I walked my dad to my room and he helped me gather the last of my things. Once we were done we went back to the front entrance at the top of the path leading to the beach and dock. The family came out to see us off. I remembered to get Korra’s number from Jinora and Ikki gave me one of her hair barrettes as a parting gift. I said goodbye to the family and promised to come visit. Before I could leave I needed to talk to Tenzin.

“Tenzin, can I talk to you for a moment?” I ask while turning away from the group.  
“Of course.” He moves away from them with me.  
“I wanted to thank you for everything. You brought me into your home and around your family, you helped me realize that my accident was not the end of my life, and you even gave me another chance with my father. If I gave you everything that I own and emptied all of my accounts it still would not show the gratitude that I feel towards you and your family.” I was tearing up again. Dammit this place makes me cry too much. I never use to cry like this.  
“My father use to tell me that a little thought and a little kindness are often worth more than a lot of money.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “The way to repay me is to rebuild your relationship with your father and continue your recovery. I would be quite proud to see you succeed in life.”  
“Thank you Tenzin. For everything.”  
“You’re welcome Asami. For everything. Don’t forget to call me. Even if it’s to say that you’re okay.”  
“I’ll call. I promise.” 

After that my father and I took the ferry back to the city. A quick drive and we’re back at the mansion. Mrs. Chiba was there to greet me and was ecstatic to see how my mood had improved. Well, as ecstatic as a 60 plus year old, reserved, Japanese woman can be. I say goodnight to her and my dad and settle in my room. It feels weird being here again. I have to remind myself that this time is not like the last time when I came home from the hospital. This time I have a plan, but most importantly I have hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone. Please let me know what you think of my story so far. I'm really interested to hear your thoughts. You can also find me on tumblr with the same name.


	8. Out and About

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami spends time with her tutor and trainer getting ready to go back to school.
> 
> I broke this chapter into parts because it was quite long. I'll post the next chapter quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: This chapter contains descriptions of a panic attack.

The next few weeks are a blur of activity. I focus on maintaining my schedule like Tenzin suggested so I set a few alarms on my phone to keep me on task. I wake up at 7 and get myself ready for the day with only a little help from Mrs. Chiba. She is quite shocked, but happy about my regained independence. 

Breakfast is at 8 and Rose, my orientation and mobility trainer, arrives at 8:30. I work with Rose on various things like labeling my clothes and bathroom products. This way I can pick out my outfit for the day without help from Mrs. Chiba. She teaches me some basic kitchen skills so I can make a snack or even tea. I was never a cook so we left that alone. Throughout the mansion and it’s grounds we worked on my navigation skills. She even taught me to use my other senses to make mental images of the new people that I meet. That way I won’t feel so isolated and scared of new people. For example I was able to guess from her voice that she was in her 30’s. Her accent told me she was from the northern Earth Kingdom and from that I know that she most likely has dark hair and brown eyes. I know from holding her arm that she is fairly slender and roughly my height. She wears multiple bracelets on her wrists because I can hear them clink when she moves and she smells like she lives in a Bath and Body Works store.

Rose would leave around noon and I would have lunch. A couple of times my dad even came home to join me and I would tell him about my mornings and he would tell me about the development of the new engine he’s been working on. After lunch he would go back to work and I would call Korra. She was so excited to hear from me the first time I called. I even got to meet the guys when she put me on speaker one time. The three of them are like the Three Stooges. I almost hurt myself laughing at their antics. 

By 1:30 my braille tutor, Akash, would come by. The next two hours were spent in the study going over pages filled with dots. I realized after a couple of study sessions that there was no way I’d be proficient by the time school starts. It turns out that there are three types of braille. One is where each letter of the words are written out. The other is contracted braille where each word has it’s own symbol. The third is strictly for math and science. Yay me. Luckily there are readers and audio versions of most books that I’ll need. I asked Akash to focus on the alphabet and math codes for now. After Akash left I continued to study, usually trying to do math. Mrs. Chiba brought me tea and snacks to keep me going until my phone chimed letting me know it’s time to call Tenzin.

Talks with Tenzin commonly involved him commending my efforts for that day and reminding me of how far I’ve come in a short amount of time. I mostly complained that I don’t have enough time and he would tell me that no one does. Somewhere in the conversation he’d throw in a Confucius quote, as Korra calls them even though they are not always by Confucius. 

Dad made sure to join me for dinner where we talked a little more. It felt less strained over time. Sometimes we reminisced and talked about the good ol’ days. He even told me stories about his projects when he was just getting started. It’s nice to be around him like this again. Of course he continued to ask me if I needed anything. I swear he would build a self driving car if I asked for it. 

After diner I usually just hung out and watched, rather listened, to tv. If Korra wasn’t busy she’d call me. She mostly talked about football and the guys. I’d tell her about the stress I felt trying to prepare for the fall semester and she usually responded with something along the lines of me being a badass. She has become an unexpected source of comfort and encouragement.

Korra has been out of town for the last two days for a game but is due back in the morning. Her season is almost over and she asked if I would come to her last home game. I said yes and because of my big mouth I’ll be working with Rose to go out in public starting tomorrow. I need to start working on my anxiety in public places if I want to be able to go to the game.

My routine is slightly different today. Mr. Lee is taking me to University Park. This area encompasses Republic City University and the surrounding parks and neighborhoods. During the fall and spring semesters this is a very busy area, but because it’s late summer school isn’t in session yet. Rose promised we would only walk around some of the quieter areas to start with.

Mr. Lee stops the car and tells me that Rose is here already. We’re meeting at a small park on the east side of the University. It’s more residential in this area meaning it’s quieter. As soon as I’m out of the car I focus on my surroundings like Rose taught me. The air is warm but not hot. There is a slight breeze that rustles the trees and I can hear birds, but not like the ones on the island. There are a few cars and mopeds going by.

“Good morning Asami. Are you ready for today?” Rose greets me in her legato voice.  
“Good morning Rose. As ready as I can be.” I tell her.  
“Wonderful. Today’s plan is to just walk around getting use to being out in public. We’ll stick to the sidewalk and stroll along the outside of this park. I’d like for us to get to West End where it gets busier. There are cafes and shops that we can meander through. Your driver can pick you up from there when we’re done. Okay?”  
“Okay.” I got this. I’m a badass.

The walk around the park went well. Every so often we would stop and Rose would quiz me about my surroundings. Due to the relative quiet of the neighborhood I was able to keep track of the things around me. By the time we reached the western edge of the park I was feeling confident. The gradual increase in traffic and people moving around helped me to adjust. 

We came to a major street that marked the end of the park and the beginning of a small soho district called West End. Rose reminded me of things I should be aware of to safely cross the street. I was able to listen to the audible walk signal and she helped me stay in the crosswalk and not stray into cars sitting at the light. 

The whole world changed once we crossed the street. The noise level increased because of the echos off of the buildings. There were more people going about their business which meant that I had less personal space. I was starting to feel overwhelmed. 

“Can we sit down somewhere?” I ask Rose.  
“Sure. On the next block is a nice coffee shop called The Last Drop. We can rest in there.”  
“Okay.” One more block and things will quiet down.

We get to the shop and Rose finds a table for us. Sitting down let me relax a bit because I didn’t need to focus on my movement anymore. A girl comes to the table to take our order and I’m not prepared to hear her voice so close to me. I’m starting to feel anxious so I remembered a breathing exercise Tenzin taught me. I order tea and try to focus on my breathing. Unfortunately, Rose decides that now is the time to talk nonstop about the West End. 

“This is my favorite part of the city and I come here as often as I can. There are some amazing shops and boutiques here. Did you know that some of the best artists in the city live here?” 

I need her to be quiet. I can’t focus. This place has too much noise. There are people talking and laughing. The espresso machine is whirring and hissing. There is a service door to the kitchen that makes a bumping noise when it swings. And Rose won’t shut up.

Outside a car with squealing brakes go by just as the door to the shop opens allowing the unmuffled sound to reach me.

At the same moment someone drops a glass and it shatters seemingly right next to me.

Instantly I’m back in my car. It’s flipped and resting on the passenger side. I’m being held in place by my seatbelt with my body hanging limp like a ragdoll. There’s broken glass everywhere. I feel fuzzy and my ears are ringing. There’s blood dripping from me hitting my hand as it hangs in the air. 

Something grabs my hand.

“Asami, are you okay?” I’m in the coffee shop. I panic. This place is too loud. I can’t see anything so I blink to clear my vision. It’s not working. I jump up from my seat knocking it over causing another loud slamming noise. I’m bumping into people. I have no idea how to get away. Someone grabs my arm and starts pulling me.  
“Calm down, you’re panicking. Let me take you to the restroom.” I can’t get my mind to settle. I feel like screaming, but I can’t get enough air. My heart is pounding like it wants to get out of my chest.  
“I’m calling Tenzin.” That woman’s voice again. I can’t remember who she is. I can’t concentrate. The noise has quieted but I’m too worked up. My back is against a wall so I slide to the floor and sit down with my knees pulled up and my arms wrapped around them. What the fuck is happening to me?  
“Tenzin is sending someone.” The voice says. But I’m in the car again. I don’t know if anyone will come in time. I’m not sure I’m even alive. I just hang there and watch the blood drip.


	9. Out and About part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami is having a major panic attack, so Tenzin sends help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank each one of you for reading this fic, giving kudos, and leaving comments. It means so much to me to know that people like my work. Thank you.

“Asami. It’s Korra.” A different voice. It pulls me from the car.  
“Korra?” Can she be here?  
“Yeah.”  
“How are you here?” Korra is here?  
“Tenzin called me and said you might need some help.” Her voice is gentle but solid. I feel like I can hold onto it.  
“I wanted to go to your game, but it’s too loud out there. I thought I could do it. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Tears start streaming down my face. I just wanted to do something nice for her. I wanted to show my support.  
“Hey. Shh. Don’t cry. It’s okay.” Her warm hands brush my cheeks to wipe at my tears. “Let me get you out of here.”  
“Korra I... I can’t. I can’t breathe out there. It’s too much.” My heart is still thundering.  
“Didn’t you tell me you like jazz music?” I hear a zipper and some rummaging sounds.  
“Um… yeah.” I sniffle.  
“I have an idea. You can wear my noise canceling headphones and listen to some jazz music while I get us out of here. Will that be okay?” I feel headphones being placed in my hands.  
“I… I don’t know.”  
“Do you remember what I told you when we were going to the cove? I said I wouldn’t let anything bad happen to you while I was around. I still mean that.”  
“O… okay.” Korra is here.  
“Where do you want me to take you?”  
I still can’t think clearly. “I don’t know.”  
“Okay don’t worry about a thing. I got you. Put the headphones on and I’ll get you out of here.”  
I did what she said and put the headphones over my ears. The padding muffles the noises that were confusing me and instead give me soft jazz music. Korra’s hands hold mine and pull me to a standing position. She holds onto me with one hand while reaching for something with the other. Soon I’m pulled close to her and suddenly the confusion isn’t so bad and my pounding heart begins to slow. I don’t feel like I’m in two places anymore. I’m firmly here in this place with Korra. I hold on to her arm with both of my hands for dear life. We start walking and I follow her every movement. Nothing touches me and no loud noises get past the headphones. We walk for a little while, but I don’t mind. We go up some stairs and I’m a little clumsy because I don’t want to let go of her to hold on to the railing. She won’t let me fall anyway so it doesn’t matter. A little more walking and I’m guided to have a seat. The music stops and the headphones are removed from my head.

“You’re in my room. This was the closest place I could think to take you to. The guys aren’t home right now so you can be here and relax. I’ll go in the other room to make some phone calls. Take your time and call me if you need anything.” Korra leaves the room and quietly closes the door. I move my hands around the surface I’m sitting on to realize this is her bed. I decide to take advantage of the situation and lie down, pulling the covers over me. The smell of Korra’s unique scent fills my nose as I drift off. It’s a light, ocean scent with earthy musk undertones that I find calming, just like everything else about her. 

I wake up and realize I don’t recognize where I am. My body goes rigid so I lie still and listen while trying to think about where I could be. The sheets are rougher than the ones on my bed, but they don’t feel like the ones on Air Temple Island either. I turn my head hoping to pick up on more details and a pleasant and familiar smell wafts past my nose. Korra. The morning comes rushing back to me. I was out with Rose and had a panic attack. Korra came to get me and brought me to her place. This is Korra’s room. I immediately relax knowing that I’m in a safe place.

I move the covers off of me and sit up on the edge of the bed. I don’t know how long I was sleep so I pull out my phone and press a button to hear the time. “12:58 PM” My phone informs me. There are muffled voices coming from beyond the bedroom door. Unfortunately, I can’t hide in here forever. I have to face Korra. I’m sure she’s disappointed with how things went this morning. After all badasses don’t have panic attacks. Maybe if I explain what happened she’ll let me make it up to her. Maybe I can buy her something. Ugh. I’m thinking like my dad. “Oh honey, I’m sorry I missed your important whatever, here’s a new car.” I take a few deep breaths and run my fingers through my hair to fix my bedhead. 

Standing up I try to get a feel for the room. Because I can hear noises I have a general idea where the door is; the trick is to find it. I find a wall and feel along it until my hand bumps the doorknob. Bingo! Quietly, I open the door and listen. I hear techno music quietly playing. Over that I can make out grunting and hitting sounds. Then there’s whispering.

“How do I do the special move with this guy?” It’s a man’s voice.  
“Why would I tell you that?” That’s Korra’s voice.  
“So I can beat you for a change.”  
“Yeah. No.”  
“Aww man.” The guy whines.

They must be playing a fighting video game. I come out of the room and follow the wall moving closer to them. The wall comes to a corner where the hallway opens to, I assume, the living room. I clear my throat.

“Asami. Hey. Did we disturb you?” Korra asks.  
“No. Not at all. I’d fallen asleep and recently woke up.” There’s a weird thumping noise.  
“Bo you promised to be cool.” Korra’s voice is suddenly stern.  
“You’re right. I’m cool. I’m cool.” The guy admits and the thumping stops.  
“Asami, this is my favorite of the Tien brothers, Bolin.”  
“It’s nice to finally meet you in person Bolin. Korra has told me so much about you.” I hold my hand out in front of me and it is quickly engulfed by two large hands.  
“This is so cool. I can’t believe you’re here in our apartment.” He’s not so much shaking my hand as he is shaking my whole arm.  
“Bolin!” Korra’s voice sounds like a warning.  
“It’s okay Korra.” Korra has told me many funny stories about Bolin. She also warned me that he would most likely be very excited when we finally meet simply because that’s just how he is. Honestly, I feel like I already know him.  
Bolin stops shaking my arm and leans into me to whisper loudly. “Protective Korra is scary Korra.”  
“I heard that.” Korra tells him.  
“Ooh look, a video game.” I hear a couple of thumps then a big puff and the game noises start up again. I can’t help but snicker at Bolin’s antics.  
“How are you doing?” Korra asks. She seems to be standing away from me. I’m not sure how to take that. Is she staying back because she’s mad or scared I’m going to freak out again?  
“I’m better than earlier. Thank you for showing up when you did.”  
“You’re welcome.” She said sheepishly. “Um, you’re dad called. I told him you were resting and would call him as soon as you could. Do you have a phone? You can use mine if you need to.”  
“I have mine. I’ll call him right now.”  
I pull out my phone and hold done one of it’s buttons. “What would you like to do?” My phone prompts me. “Call dad.” I say. “Calling Dad.” The device responds.  
There was maybe one full ring before I hear my dad’s voice.  
“Sweetheart is that you?” His voice is strained with worry.  
“Yeah it’s me.”  
“Oh thank goodness. Are you okay? What happened?”  
“I had a panic attack, but I’m better now.”  
“Give me the address there and I’ll come get you.” Wow he actually said he would come and get me, not send Mr. Lee.  
“Wait dad. Hold on a second.” I take the phone away from my ear.  
“Korra?” I say to the room in general. She is being so quiet I lost track of her.  
“Yeah?” She hasn’t moved from her previous spot.  
“Do you mind if I stay here for a little longer? I was hoping we could talk.”  
“Sure. Yeah. Stay as long as you want. Mi casa es su casa.” There’s the rambling Korra I’m use to. I put the phone back to my ear.  
“Dad. I going to stay at Korra’s place for a little longer.”  
“Okay sweetheart. Please send me the address and call me if you need to. I love you.”  
“I will. I love you too. I call you later. Bye.” I end the call.  
“Korra can you text my dad the address here please?” I hold out my phone to her.  
“Yeah.” She takes my phone and a moment later gives it back. “All done.”  
“Thanks.” Cue the awkward silence. I wrack my brain trying to think of a way to fix this weirdness between us.  
“So, um, are you hungry?” She tentatively asks.  
“Yes.” Crisis averted.  
“Take my hand.” A familiar warm hand lightly touches mine and I grab hold. “The dining table is just to your left. Here’s a chair. Have a seat and I’ll get us some grub.” 

My hand is placed on the back of a chair and I take a seat. I focus on my surroundings to try to figure out the layout of the space I’m in. Korra walks away behind me and to my right. I hear her moving around in the kitchen. The sound of the refrigerator door and cabinet doors being opened and closed clue me in to the location of the kitchen. Bolin is still playing the game to my right and a little forward. Some muffled street noises are on my left so I must be next to a window. 

I sit there in silence trying to figure out what I’m going to say to her. I need to explain myself and apologize for today. Maybe she’ll accept and we can still be friends. I feel like Korra could be a good friend to have; a real friend. I’ve never been around anyone like her before. I can’t imagine any of the people I use to hang out with helping me like she did today. She’s funny, compassionate, and friendly. Even though she was very excited when she figured out who I was, she doesn’t come off as a person that would hang around for my money or status. 

“Here you go. It’s a bowl of seaweed noodles with beef and veggies.” Korra places the food on the table.  
“Ah, your favorite if I recall correctly.” She mentioned this during one of our conversations.  
“Yep. Oh, and I got you a mug of green tea.”

The food smells delicious and it just ocurred to me that I am very hungry. I tuck into the bowl without further delay. I can hear Korra doing the same next to me. After a few minutes we’re both done. 

“You said you wanted to talk to me earlier.” She leads.  
“I just wanted to apologize for today.” I’m holding the mug to my chest and my head is down.  
“Apologize for what exactly?”  
“My behavior this morning and you having to stop what you were doing to come and get me. Then letting me stay here despite whatever plans you had for today. That doesn’t account for not being able to make it to your game -”  
“Stop it. Listen to me.” My mug is pulled away and replaced by her hands. “You have nothing to apologize for. Your panic attack this morning was not your fault. Shit happens. I came to help you because I wanted to make sure you were okay. I brought you here because it’s the safest place I know outside of the island.”  
“I… I thought you would be disappointed.” Her reaction is so foreign to me that I don’t know how to take it.  
“Never!” The knots in my gut unravel at her statement. “And you are coming to my game.”  
“Korra! I can’t. Today was a total failure.” My body goes tense just thinking about it.  
“Today was not a total failure. You were outside and walked to that coffee shop. That much was a success.”  
“True, but a football game is going to be 100 times worse than the coffee shop!”  
“Hey. Are we friends?” She asks me out of nowhere.  
“Huh?”  
“Do you consider us friends?”  
“Um, yeah?” I have no idea where this is going.  
“Are you asking me or are you telling me?”  
“Yes, I consider us friends.” I tell her.  
“Hey Bo. What do friends do?” Korra yells out.  
“They take care of each other. Wait! Asami can I be your friend too?” Bolin yells back from across the room.  
“Sure Bo.” I can’t help but crack a smile.  
“Yessss!” Bolin whoops.  
“Um, Korra. What are you going to do exactly?” I cautiously ask.  
“I have no idea, but I’m sure Tenzin can guide us. We can figure this out together. Besides, if all else fails I have duct tape.” At that last statement she squeezes my hands and I’m laughing. I hear thumping again and guess that Bolin is coming towards us.  
“Guys, we could be like the Three Musketeers!” This guy’s enthusiasm knows no bounds.  
“Now that we have that settled on to operation ‘Make Asami have fun’.” Korra declares.  
“And what exactly does that entail?” I wonder.  
“First you tell me your favorite movie snack food, then you pick out a movie to watch. I’ll go to the store real quick to get our snack supplies, while Bolin gives you a guided tour of our apartment. When I get back we pile on the couch to watch a good movie and eat junk food like we’re 10 year olds fresh from trick or treating.”  
“Okay. Um… I like Flamin Hot Cheetos and Sprite.” This could be fun.  
“Gottcha. I’m leaving for the store. If you think of anything else just call me. Bolin you’re up.” Korra gets up from the table and soon after the door opens and closes.  
“Alright, my turn. Allow me to show you our humble abode.” Bolin is a character. “ So this is the dining area and over there is my room that I share with my big bro Mako. Korra’s room is that way -”  
“Bolin.” I stop him.  
“Yeah?”  
“Let’s pretend that I’m blind and try again.”  
“Oh! Uh…” I can almost hear his brain working overtime trying to figure out what to do so I decide to help him help me. Tenzin taught me that I will have to do that sometimes.  
“Bo, how about you walk me around the place and describe things to me.” That should do it.  
“Sweet. Right this way.” Bolin walks off without me. This would be frustrating if he wasn’t so funny.  
“Bolin. Please come back.” I’ve figured out that the thumping is caused by Bolin’s footsteps. He comes back to the table and I put my hands out. I find the hulk of a guy and turn him around so he’s facing away from me. I grab hold of his arm which is big. “I’m going to hold onto you while you walk. Don’t let me walk into anything, okay. Take me to the front door and start the tour from there.”  
“Ahhh. Okay.” We move forward several feet straight ahead then turn around. “Okay we’re at the front door. On your left is a bar with the kitchen behind it. On your right is the living room. We have a big comfy couch, two jumbo bean bags, and a low table. The tv and everything all sit on some shelves that are built into the wall. How am I doing?”  
“You’re doing great. keep going.” I feel him puff up at my encouragement. This guy is a pure sweetie.  
“So directly in front of us is a big window and the dining table sits in front of it.” We start moving forward and stop short of making it back to the dining table. “If we turn left after the kitchen we’re in the hallway on Korra’s side.” He turns so we’re facing left. “There is a closet on the left, Korra’s bathroom at the end of the hallway, and Korra’s bedroom on the right. If you turn right, you’re on my and Mako’s side.” He turns again and now we’re facing right. “Our room is on the left, the bathroom at the end, and the closet on your right.”  
“Thank you Bolin.” I let go of his arm.  
“It was my pleasure.”  
“Can you hand me my cane please?”  
“Here ya go.”  
“Thank you. Excuse me.” With my cane I find Korra’s bathroom now that I know the layout of the apartment. As soon as I open the door I can smell that same musk scent that’s on Korra. It must be in her shower gel or shampoo. 

I go back to the living room when I’m done and just as I’m moving past the dining table the front door opens. I hear the noise of plastic grocery bags. It must be Korra.  
“Hey, I’m back with all of the goodies.” The door closes and there’s a huge thump. “Bo, chill out. We don’t want the lady downstairs complaining about you jumping around again.” Bolin was on the couch and the thump was in front of me so he must have jumped over the couch.  
“Did you get my favorite?” Bolin asks.  
“I’m offended you would even think to ask me that.” Korra scoffs back at him. “Here. Let’s get setup.” I hear the bags again and things being placed on the table that Bolin said was in front of the couch. “Hey.” Korra has moved in front of me.  
“Hey.” I say back.  
“Did Bo give you the nickel tour?”  
“Yeah. It was fun.” I smirk at the memory.  
“Good. What movie do you want to watch?”  
“How about Guardians of the Galaxy?”  
“OH MY SPIRITS!!! I think I just fell in love with you.” Bolin shouts. Korra starts laughing.  
“That is his favorite movie. This is going to be fun. Come on.” Korra brushes my hand like she did earlier. I think she’s getting the hang of this.

She leads me around to the front of the couch and places me farthest from the door. The couch is big and comfy just like Bolin said. She hands my snacks to me while Bolin gets the movie ready.  
“We have two rules to movie watching. Rule number one - get comfortable. Rule number two - have fun. Bolin do the honors.”

Bolin starts the movie and we all munch our snacks. I learn that Bolin’s favorite is a mix of gummy bears and sour patch kids with Mountain Dew. Korra likes Skittles and Dr. Pepper. When the opening scene starts I hear Bolin moving around a lot. Korra explains between giggles that he’s mimicking the dance moves of the character onscreen. The rest of the movie is spent with us reciting the dialogue and laughing. 

When the movie is over I text my dad to come pick me up. Korra and Bolin decide to entertain me while I wait for my dad with tales of their hilarious escapades. I was crying laughing by the time my dad called to say he was outside.

“Okay you two my dad is here so I gotta go.” I announce as I get up from the couch.  
“Awwwwwww.” Bolin grumbles.  
“Don’t worry Bo, we’ll hang out again.”  
“Great! Uh, Asami I was wondering if I could hug you because I’m a hugger and I hug all of my friends when I say goodbye or hello or just whenever. Ask Korra. I hug her all of the time right bro.”  
“Yeah bro.” Korra affirms.  
“So can I?” His once booming voice is now timid.  
“Sure.” I hold out my arms and smile in his direction. His big arms and barrel chest engulfs me in a hug.  
“Okay bro let her go.” Korra tells him.  
“Bye Asami. See you soon.” He lets go and moves away.  
“I’ll walk you out.” Korra leads me outside to my dad, who was standing by his car waiting.  
“Mr. Sato?”  
“Ah, you must be the young lady that I spoke with on the phone earlier.” My dad responds in his business voice. “It’s nice to meet you.”  
“It’s nice to meet you too sir.” I feel Korra shake my dad’s hand.  
“Thank you so much for taking care of my daughter Korra. Please tell me how I can repay your kindness.” My heart pauses waiting for Korra’s response to my dad’s offer.  
“Repayment is not necessary Mr. Sato. Asami is my friend and I take care of my friends.” My heart resumes its beating and the smile on my face is bright I’m sure.  
“That is a very noble attitude. I’m happy to hear my daughter has a friend like you. Asami are you ready to go?” My father’s voice is now warm and I can tell he likes Korra.  
“Yeah dad.” I let go of Korra as she turns to say bye.  
“I’ll talk to Tenzin and call you tomorrow. We’ll figure this out okay.”  
“Okay.” She takes my hand and places it on the open car door.  
“Later Asami.”  
“See you later Korra.” I get in the car and she closes the door. 

I tell my dad about my entire day while he drives us through the city. Talking to my dad makes me feel good about our relationship. He's engaging with me more and participating in my life. He sometimes doesn’t know what to say or do, but that’s okay. At least he's more than just a source of money; he’s an active presence. 

I’m feeling high after hanging out with Korra and Bolin. I’ve never felt so happy and free. If this is what it’s like to have real friends then I have lived a very sad existence until now. It seems that even though I lost my sight, I have gained friends and family. I’m not sure I would have willingly paid the price of sight if given the option, but I will admit that the way I feel right now makes me think that maybe, just maybe it was worth it.

It’s still early evening when we get back to the mansion. I decide to call Tenzin and ask his advice about how I should proceed. I go to the study and sit on one of the classically styled, high back, leather chairs. I pull out my phone and call Tenzin.

“Hello.” His baritone voice greets me after just two rings.  
“Hi Tenzin, it’s Asami.”  
“I’m glad you called. You sound like you have recovered from earlier.” He always sounds so concerned for me, like he actually cares if I’m okay.  
“Yeah, I have. Thank you for calling Korra. She was a huge help. I don’t know what would have happened if she didn’t show up when she did.”  
“Good. I’m curious though about the panic attack itself. Do you want to talk about that?” He was giving me an out if this was too much to talk about.  
“I probably should.” I deflate at the idea. This will likely be a difficult and draining conversation.  
“Tell me what was happening when it started.”  
“Um… I was in the coffee shop and the noises were too much. I heard a glass break and I seemed to break along with it.”  
“Do you remember what was going through your mind during the attack?”  
“I felt like I was back in the car the night of the accident. I remember thinking that I was still there and none of what has happened since was real. I thought I was going to die in that car.” I have to remind myself to breathe.  
“Asami, how have you dealt with the accident?”  
“What do you mean?” Everyday of my life is ‘dealing with the accident.’  
“I get the impression that you are still stuck in that car. Your body came out of it, but your mind is stuck there. You haven’t allowed yourself to accept what happened.”  
“What are you talking about. I deal with the results of the accident everyday. I’m trying to find my way under these new circumstances.” I’m getting defensive and that never works with Tenzin.  
“Have you talked about what happened that night with anyone?”  
“No. Everyone knows what happened.”  
“I don’t.”  
“Well, it’s simple. I was driving and got hit and now I’m blind.” I try not to think about the details of the accident.  
“Asami, I don’t think you are going to be able to move forward until you go back. It doesn’t have to be me, but you need to talk about that night. You are still obviously very angry about that night. That anger will hold you back from succeeding in your current efforts. A boat cannot sail the seas if it’s anchored to the docks.”  
“I can’t go back Tenzin. I have so much to do, so much to learn just to get ready for school. Thinking about that night is what had me stuck in my room for months. I’m finally making progress. I can’t stop now.” If I stop I don’t know if I will be able to start again.  
“I won’t try to force you to talk. Just remember what I said. In the meantime practice the breathing techniques I taught you. If you want, you can come to the island and we can meditate together.”  
“Okay. I’ll practice and maybe I can come over this weekend. Thank you Tenzin.”  
“You’re welcome.”  
“I should go get ready for dinner.”  
“As should I. Have a good evening Asami.”  
“You too. Bye.”

I have lost some of my euphoria from earlier. Just thinking about talking about the accident puts my nerves on edge. I have to stay focused on my goals. I want to go to Korra’s game. I want to learn enough braille before school starts so that I don’t fall behind any more than I have already. I know that I’m ahead of my peers, but if I don’t meet my personal best then I feel like I failed. Satos don’t fail. I can do this. I’m a badass.

Dinner went by quickly and sleep was difficult, but another day has started and I have a choice to make. I can rise to the occasion or hide under my bedsheets. I choose to rise.


	10. Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami works hard to get over her panic attack and makes plans to spend time with her new friends.

Once again I’m outside with Rose. This time we stick closer to the mansion. She has apologised several times for yesterday to both me and my dad. He spoke with her privately and I’m sure he gave her his patented ‘I am a rich and powerful man that can ruin your life if you mess up again’ peptalk. I don’t know if scarring my trainer is an effective tactic in this scenario.

We are a short distance out of the posh neighborhood and I’m told that Mr. Lee is very close with the car if I become overwhelmed. It’s a quiet residential neighborhood with little traffic and few people out and about. There are some kids playing, but overall everything is very quiet. I’m able to focus and navigate well with minimal prompts from Rose. 

When my lesson is over I get in the car and Mr. Lee takes me back. I immediately start texting Korra to let her know about my morning. As I predicted she is just as excited as I am. After lunch I’m in the study with Akash. Our sessions are mentally draining, but I feel like I’m making progress. Luckily we’re not working on actual math skills or Akash would likely be lost. We’re just focusing on my ability to read and write the math using braille.

I spend the rest of the week in a similar routine. My sessions with Rose continue to push my boundaries as we slowly go to busier areas. I now have my study sessions in the public library which makes me feel very accomplished. It’s also a great training opportunity because not every book I need is available in a format that I can use. Akash shows me a way to translate books that don’t come in braille or audio format. It’s a little scanner that can read the book to me as I move it down the page. Of course it doesn’t work so well when there are math formulas, but it was designed for words and numbers not equations. 

Though I’m doing well in general I have had some issues. I’ve had mild panic attacks twice now. I told Korra and she suggested that I keep noise canceling headphones with me. That way when I start to feel overwhelmed I can put them on a take a ‘timeout’. Her words not mine. Korra and Bolin have been very supportive and encouraging on top of the fact that they both have been working hard all week. I really want to do something special with them this weekend. 

“Bolin.” I call my favorite future movie star on the phone.  
“Hey Asami! How’s my favorite future fan?” I know now to turn the volume down on my phone before I call him.  
“I’m good. Hey, do you have plans for Saturday?”  
“Let me check my schedule…” He says this with a British accent. “I can move some things around. What’s going on?”  
“Just clear your schedule for the day. I’ll text you an address. Show up at noon prepared to relax and have fun.”  
“Ooohhh intriguing. I can’t wait!”  
“Can you try to bring Mako? I know he works a lot, but I would really like to meet him even if he can’t stay.”  
“He’ll be there if I have to drag him kicking and screaming.” Knowing Bolin he means that literally. “What about Korra?”  
“Don’t worry, I already sent her a text telling her to call me when she gets out of practice.”  
“Okay good. Listen I gotta go. See ya later.” He must be at work otherwise he would talk my ear off.  
“Yep. See ya.” I end the call. 

I’m back at the mansion after my study session in the library. I call out for Mrs. Chiba and head towards my room when I hear her footsteps fall in step with mine.  
“Good afternoon Miss Sato.” I swear this woman is a ninja.  
“Good afternoon Mrs. Chiba. I’ve prepared a list can you take care of it for me please?” I hand her a folded piece of paper. She takes it from me.  
“When do you want this completed?” She asks.  
“Saturday, no later than noon.” I tell her.  
“Are you sure about this?” I stop in my tracks and turn towards her.  
“Absolutely.”  
“Then I will get started on it now.” I hear her walk away. Now I just need Korra to call me.

I decide to spend my time waiting for Korra to call going through my closet. I have a big, nay, huge closet and I don’t remember half of the stuff that’s in there. I run my hand over the fabrics hanging and reminisce about outfits that I’ve worn. With Rose’s and Mrs. Chiba’s help a lot of the items in here have been labeled so I can identify them. My shoe boxes have braille labels that tell me about the shoes inside, though we had to get a little bit more creative with my clothing. The original idea was to just sew a braille tag into the clothes, but after a test run I vetoed that idea. The tag was too itchy or conspicuous. So Mrs. Chiba and I came up with the idea of a series of symbols that indicated the color/colors of the item. She would sew the symbols into the clothing item inside the back neck area with the predominate color of multicolored items first. Thankfully I prefer mostly reds, blacks, and grey for most of my clothes. So we made a circle for red, pipe (|) for black, and cross for grey. There are other colors too so she posted a legend inside the closet on the wall near the light switch. I chose to go with shapes instead of the braille because I didn’t want a bunch of raised dots in my clothes. 

My phone rings and it announces that Korra is calling.  
“Hey Korra.” I answer the phone.  
“Hey Badass. What’s up?”  
“Are you busy Saturday?” Please say no.  
“Not really. Just my usual.” I know that Korra’s usual consists of sleeping in, working out, and goofing around.  
“Why don’t you trade in your usual for a fun day with me and the guys?” Please say yes.  
“You had me at ‘fun’. What’s the plan?”  
“The plan is, I text you an address and you show up at noon. I’ve already talked to Bolin and he’s coming. Hopefully he’ll be able to get Mako to come too.”  
“Where are we going?”  
“It’s a surprise. Just say you’ll come.” I can’t hide my excitement.  
“I’ll be there with bells on. How’s that?” There’s laughter in her voice.  
“Haha funny. Just be there; no bells required.”  
“Okay Badass, I’ll be there. Do you mind if we talk laker? I just finished practice and I’m starving. I feel like I could eat a leopard-moose.”  
“Sure. I’ll text you later. Bye.”  
“K, bye.”

After dinner I grabbed my headphones and headed to my dad’s garage. I needed to get ready for Saturday and this is the first step. Entering the garage I hear my dad tinkering with something. I was actually hoping he would be in here when I didn’t find him in his office.

“Hey dad.”  
“Hey sweetheart.”  
“So dad, I was wondering if you would help me with something.” This will make or break my Saturday plans.  
“Oh. What would that be?” He sounded apprehensive.  
“I want to have fun with my friends Saturday and I need to make sure I can handle it. Could you turn on your roadster for me? I want to know if the sound will freak me out.”  
“That’s a big step Asami. Are you sure you’re ready?” He voice holds concern for me and that makes me feel better about this.  
“As ready as I can get I guess. I have my headphones and I’ll stay over here by the door.”  
“Only if you’re sure.”  
“Yeah dad. I need to do this.”  
“Alright. I’ll go start it.” I listen to his footsteps recede into the garage. I hear him open the door and get into his favorite little car. A moment later the engine roars to life then settles into a rhythmic idle. I was so nervous about being nervous that I hadn’t considered the alternative. The sound is music to my ears and I stand there basking in the sound of mechanical perfection. Using my cane I find my way down the middle of the garage closer to the car. I walk around the machine to hear it at every angle.  
“Did you retune it?” I ask my dad.  
“How did you know?” He chuckles his response.  
“It’s pitch is higher than I remember.”  
‘You could always hear the most subtle changes. Yes, I recently tuned it. I was trying to pull more power from the top end.”  
“What about the gearing?”

I spent the rest of the night in the garage with my dad and regained a lot of my old confidence that night. We stayed working until late before we both remembered we had busy schedules for the next day. 

It’s Friday morning and Mr. Lee is driving me to a very special place. I am shaking with a mix of nervousness and excitement because I haven’t been to the Future Industries test track in almost a year. I had gotten so busy that I couldn’t come here as much as I wanted to. Then the accident happened and this place became a distant memory. But now I’m back. 

Today is a test for me for a couple of reasons. First, I need the people here to see me ready to resume my life. I’d earned their respect before with my mechanical knowledge and prowess on the track. If they can still respect me, then maybe the people at the office can too. I also want to expose myself to a loud environment. It won’t be quite like I expect the arena will be, but it’s as close as I can get.  
The car comes to a stop and I stay there for a minute just calming my heartrate. I get out of the car and am greeted by Lily, the track operations manager. Lily used to love to watch me race. Her favorite thing would be to get a cocky rookie driver and put them against me on the track. I would put them in their place of course; second place. They would think it was a trick until I introduced myself. Good times.

“It’s so good to see you again Asami.” Lily’s melodic voice greets me and she clasps my outstretched hand.  
“It’s good to be back. By the way, what’s your hair look like now?” She laughs out loud at my question. Lily treated her hair like an accessory. Her hair changed colors and styles faster than a Superman costume change.  
“It’s just past my shoulders with short bangs and it’s mostly black with red tips. Except for my bangs which are all black. What do you think?”  
“I think I have no idea what your natural hair color is.” I smile and shake my head.  
“I will never tell.” She answers brightly. “So what’s on your agenda for today?”  
“I really just wanted to be here again. I want to get around the track and go to my garage. Is Ken here today?” Ken is my favorite driver. He was the only one who could keep up with me. We shared a great rivalry.  
“No actually we pushed his runs back until tomorrow. I received your instructions yesterday and adjusted his schedule. I hope I didn’t make a mess of things.”  
“No, that’s fine. I was just curious.”  
“Should I take you down to the track or would you prefer to go alone?” I appreciate her asking more than I can say.  
“It has been awhile. Could you guide me please?”  
“I’d be happy to.”

There wasn’t much interesting going on at the track today. A sedan was being tested for comfort. While the test was important, it was boring. A driver takes the car around the oval track that has various surface imperfections to simulate real road conditions. I would rather watch paint dry. 

We left the track and went to my garage. There are multiple garages on site. The main garage holds the production or soon-to-be production vehicles that need to be tested. The second garage holds the concept designs. There’s a third garage for the race teams. My dad and I each have our own garage.

Entering my garage I feel a sense of nostalgia. I followed my father’s footsteps when I was a child, literally. I learned at his side all about engines and automotive mechanics. As I got older I worked more and more on my own and eventually, dad built this garage for me. I spent so many hours here over the years that anyone who knew me, knew they could most likely find me here. This place held equal parts motor oil, fuel, blood, and sweat.

“Has anyone been in here?” I ask Lily.  
“Yes. Your dad had me shift two of our senior mechanics to this garage for your vehicles’ maintenance. And Ken takes out the dragon to keep it in shape.”  
“Where is it?” I hold out my hand and Lily takes me to my baby.

The AS Ryu. It was the last motorcycle design I’d completed before the accident. I always had 2 or 3 in the planning stage, but this was the biggest and baddest bike I had built. It’s 1,000 cc engine was designed for competition racing and when I took it for a test drive it felt like riding a lightening bolt compared to my previous bikes. I’m happy to know that it hadn’t been just sitting here rotting away. This bike was designed to be pushed to it’s limits. 

I run my hand over it and remember designing every inch. I prop my cane against the wall at the back of the bike and swing my leg over the frame. Settling into the seat I let my mind drift back to that first ride. We had opened up the track so I could have the entire 3.3 miles with 20 turns at my disposal. Harnessing all of that raw power to rocket around the track was beyond exhilarating. After 5 laps I brought the bike into the pit lane and dismounted. I was so full of adrenaline that I could barely walk I was shaking so bad. 

The memory is bittersweet, because I will never ride again. Feeling a little sad I get off of the bike, shake off the memories, and collect my cane.

“You know, this place has missed you.” Lily says.  
“I missed it too.” I openly admit.

I spend some more time with Lily going around the facility and talking to the track staff. I have worked with a lot of the people here and wanted to say hello to a select few. They each expressed how happy they were about my return. Their kind words made me feel good about wanting to come back. Ending our rounds in the cafeteria, Lily and I had lunch together and I left shortly thereafter.

Mr. Lee took me to another of my special places when we left the track. I wanted to make sure everything was ready for tomorrow. I also wanted to walk around and familiarize myself with the space again. 

I returned to the mansion just in time for dinner, however dad was busy so the meal was a quiet affair. Afterwards, I settled in the study to relax with a book, but I was so eager for Saturday that I couldn’t focus on the words. I ended up spending my night flipping through channels on the television.


	11. Need for Speed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami takes her friends to the race track.

It’s Saturday. I lie in my bed and breathe. I have been working hard all week to make today possible. I know that most people don’t think twice about hanging out with their friends; it’s a natural thing to do, but this is new territory for me. The people I spent time with before were leeches. I didn’t really care about them and the feeling, or lack thereof, was mutual. Korra, Bolin, and hopefully Mako are different. They care. I felt it when I was with them. I really want them to like me and even though I don’t think they care about my money, I’ll admit that I plan to show off a little today. I don’t actually know how else to associate with others my age. All of my relationships fall into three categories: family, teachers, subordinates. I don’t even know if I know how to have friends. I do know that I want today to go well with everyone having a good time.

I can handle my morning routine by myself now thanks to Rose and Mrs. Chiba helping me learn how to do my hair and makeup and pick out my clothes. I decide to dress casual today. A simple pair of jeans paired with a dark red belt, a long sleeve button down with the sleeves folded up, and my favorite pair of tall boots to finish my look. I keep my makeup simple and put my long, onyx hair in a low ponytail. 

I have breakfast in the kitchen while listening to the radio. The weatherman announces that today will have clear skies with a high of 80. That is perfect track weather. I spend the rest of the morning flitting around the mansion trying to pass the time. Yesterday, I texted the track’s address to everyone with instructions to meet there at noon, so all I can do now is wait. 

It’s 11am and I can’t wait any longer. I have Mr. Lee drive me to the track that is only 20 minutes away. Arriving at the track I meet up with Lily again.

“Hey Little Boss.” Almost everyone here calls me Little Boss. My dad is Big Boss, but they never say that to his face. I find it endearing. They even had it embroidered on my track suit.  
“Hey Lily. Is everything ready for today?”  
“Yes. Exactly as instructed.” We walk into the front lobby where we’ll wait for the others.  
“Are the cars warmed up? Did you open the whole track? Is the pit clean?”  
“Asami.” Lily stops my nervous questioning.  
“Yeah?”  
“I took care of everything. Just relax and have fun with your friends. You do remember how to have fun right?”  
“I’m having to relearn that skill.”  
“Jokes. That’s a good sign. You’ll be fine.” She assures me. We sit and talk shop waiting for everyone to arrive. 

“Looks like your friends are here. Ooh, that’s the AS1. At least one of your friends have good taste.” Lily comments. We both walk outside to greet them.

I hear a door slam closed followed by another shortly after. That must mean Bolin and Mako are here since Korra is on the bike.

“Asami! Long time no see!” Bolin comes toward me. “Hey, where’s my hug?”  
“Sorry.” I hold out my arms and he gives me a big hug.  
“Asami meet my big bro, Mako. Mako meet Asami, my new buddy.”  
“Hi Mako. It’s nice to finally meet you in person.” I hold out my hand and feel a careful grip by a hand just bigger than mine and heavily calloused. I remember Boling telling me that Mako use to work in a factory before he got the internship with the police department.  
“Uh, it’s nice to meet you too.” He sounded a little flustered.  
“Hey bro. Put your tongue back in your mouth and pick your jaw up off the ground.” It takes everything I have not to snicker at Bolin’s comment. Korra guffaws loud enough for the both of us.  
“Shut up Bo!” Mako retaliates and lets go of my hand.  
“Hey Badass!” Korra greets me.  
“Hey Korra.” I send a smile in the direction of her voice. “Thank you guys for coming today. I know I was secretive, but I wanted to surprise you. Let me introduce Lily. She is the operations’ manager here and I’ll let her tell you what we are doing today.”  
“Hi everyone.” Lily moves forward while everyone says hi. “Asami has asked me to show you our test track and some of our race cars. If you’ll follow me I’ll take you on a quick tour and then we’ll head to the pit.”  
“This is a race track?!” Bolin asks.  
“Actually, it’s the Future Industries test track. All of the cars and motorcycles produced by the company are tested here.” I tell them. 

Lily’s footsteps move toward a hallway and I hear the others move to follow. Korra’s hand brushes mine and I reactively grab her arm. I don’t really need her to guide me here because the hallways are wide and unobstructed, but it feels... natural. I can’t explain it better than that. 

True to form, Bolin oogles at everything, Mako stays cool, and Korra is soaking it all in. When we get to the pit Lily explains how things work here.

“This is the pit. It’s where the crew is stationed while a car is on the track and this stretch of track right in front of us is where the cars come in for a pit stop.”  
“Oh my spirits! This is so totally amazing! I can’t believe this!” Bolin exclaims.  
“Hey Bro. Pick your jaw up off the ground.” Mako teases Bolin.  
“Asami this is freaking mind-blowing!” Korra leans in to tell me. I’m grinning from ear to ear.  
“The crew here take care of the car and driver during a race. This is Mr. Po. He is our crew chief and responsible for the cars today. Right now he’s monitoring the three drivers we have on the track. If you look at the monitors over there you can see the driver’s positions on the track. Everyone please put these headsets on. They’ll protect your ears from the noise while allowing us to talk.”

I let go of Korra and put my headset on. There is a pregnant silence while, I guess, they watch the monitors and wait for the cars to come into our line of sight. I can feel the vibrations from the cars getting stronger, which means they are getting closer. Everyone should be able to see the cars come around turn 20 any second now.  
“Korra.” I call her.  
“Huh?” I point in the direction of turn 20. A second later I feel the cars thunder by us.  
“How fast are they going?” Mako asks, finally sounding excited.  
“They should be keeping it civil today so about 100 mph. Right Lily?”  
“Yep.” She replies.  
“You call 100 mph civil?” Korra asks.  
“Well, they are race cars.”  
“I love race cars.” Bolin fawns.  
“You love everything Bo.” Mako says.

The cars rip past us again.  
“Hey guys. Do you want to ride shotgun for a few laps?”  
“Really?” Mako almost whispers.  
“Yeah. I promise it’s more fun than standing here.”  
“Count me in.” Mako responds.  
“Me too!” Korra adds.  
“Me three!” Bolin joins in.  
“Okay you three come over here so I can get you some protective gear.” Lily directs them.

Lilly gets them jumpsuits and helmets to wear for their ride along. They won’t be in any danger, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry. While they are getting fitted the three cars pull into the pit stop.

“Hey Asami. I was so happy to hear you were coming back. You look great.” Ken comes over to me and puts a hand on my shoulder.  
“Thanks Ken. And thank you for taking care of Ryu.”  
“No problem. Besides, I look better on it than you.” He lightly shakes my shoulder while he laughs.  
“Only in your dreams Ken.” I swat at him.  
“So these are your friends?”  
“Yeah. Korra, Bolin, and Mako. I’d like you to take them around for a few laps.”  
“Sure thing Little Boss. Alright let’s load up.”  
“Hey, you’re not riding?” Korra asks me.  
“No. I’m not ready for that yet.”  
“I don’t have to ride. I can hang with you.” Korra is so considerate. I hope I’m not blushing.  
“Absolutely not. I want you to ride. I think you’ll love it. I’ll be here to judge who comes in first.” I push her towards the pit wall.  
“Okay. Okay. You don’t have to push me. I’ll go.” Korra laughs.

They all get into the race cars and soon take off. I change channels on the headset and hear them all holler at the acceleration. I miss being behind the wheel but I am having fun listening to them. They are all taunting each other, talking trash as they progress through the laps. When they’re done racing around I ask Lily to take their pictures with them suited up by the cars. 

“Asami that was unreal. I never imagined doing that. Thank you so much.” Bolin gives me a big hug.  
“Easy Bo. Don’t crush her.” Bolin lets me go at Mako’s reprimand.  
“That really was amazing. Thank you Asami.” Mako tells me.  
“You’re welcome.”  
“Asami, your badass level went up ten fold.” Korra says making me laugh.  
“Well maybe after I say this my level will skyrocket.”  
“Okay shoot.”  
“How fast have you driven your bike?”  
“Hmm. I’ve pushed about 130 mph on a run to Harbor City one time.”  
“Have you ever been through Bender’s Pass?” Bender’s Pass is a section of road through the mountains, north of the city, that has a lot of curves and is sheer fun on a motorcycle.  
“Of course. I rode it over and over until I could lean the bike almost all the way over.”  
“Perfect. I know you love your AS1, but how would you like to ride an AS Phantom on the track?”  
“Hell yes!” Korra shouts.  
“Great! Change your suit and you can go for a spin. Guys, do you ride motorcycles?”  
“Nah. We prefer more wheels on the ground.” Mako speaks for them both.  
“Yeah. It’ll be cool to see Korra ride though.” Bolin adds.

“Whoa Korra you look like a Power Ranger!” Bolin calls to her.  
“I do look like I can kick ass in this!” Korra says.  
“You may look like a Power Ranger but be careful out there.” Mako says to her.  
“I will. Don’t worry.”  
“Okay Power Ranger let me show you the bike.” I cross over the low wall and onto the pit road. Korra and I walk to the bikes that Ken has brought out.  
“This bike is slick.” She comments.  
“This is the current production model and handles better and is quicker than the AS1. Ken is going to pace you around the track. I don’t want you to push too hard, okay. Your helmet has a radio in it so we can communicate. Any questions?”  
“Nope.”  
“Okay. Have fun and ride safe.” I get back over the wall into the pit. The bikes start up a moment later. I hear one of the bikes rev the engine a few times. It must be Korra getting a feel for the throttle. A few seconds later they both ride off.  
“Korra. Can you hear me?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Follow Ken’s movements to warm up on your first lap.”  
“Okay.” I hear the engine rev up a little more.  
“How does she look out there Lily?”  
“She’s following Ken exactly.” That’s what I wanted to hear. 

When they come around for the second lap I tell Ken to pick up the pace. By their third lap they are topping 150 in the straightaways and Korra is doing great. Lily says she’s a natural. I let them go two more laps then pull them in.

The bikes come to a stop in front of the pit. I hear the guys rush to her.  
“Korra that was mind blowing.” Bolin cheers.  
“You looked like a professional.” Mako says.  
“Yeah Korra. If I didn’t know any better I would have thought this was not your first time on a track.” Ken tells her.  
“Wow. Thanks Ken. I really just followed you, so that makes you a great leader.” I appreciate how humble Korra is being.  
“Did you like it?” I ask her.  
“Asami, I don’t even have words for the level of amazing that was. I can’t thank you enough.” She sounds out of breath trying to talk to me and when she hugs me I feel her body trembling. That means the adrenaline rush was huge.  
“You don’t have to thank me. I really just wanted everyone to have a good time. Go get changed and we’ll go eat.” 

I had some food catered from one of my favorite restaurants in the city, Bonfire Grill. It’s a place near the beach that serves the best seafood. I ordered the full spread with shark skewers, grilled shrimp with steamed veggies and rice, raw oysters (my personal favorite), and grilled fruit drizzled with syrup for dessert.

We’re all sitting at one of the tables enjoying our late lunch.  
“Ashami, dish ish soooo gud.” Bolin says to me with his mouth clearly full.  
“Bro. Chew.” Mako scolds his brother.  
“You know you didn’t have to go to all this trouble for us, right?” Korra asks me.  
“It was no trouble at all.” I tell her. “So Mako, how’s your internship going?”  
“It’s great. I mean I don’t get to do any real police work, but I get to see how things get done. I can’t wait to finish my classes and work as an officer. The chief said I had a lot of potential.”  
“You do have a lot of potential seeing as you are a natural party pooper.” Korra said.  
“Look, just because I didn’t want to go streaking through campus doesn’t mean I’m a party pooper.” Mako defended.  
“You streaked through campus?” I asked incredulously.  
“I admit nothing.” She said resolutely.  
“Okay then. How are things with you Bolin?” I change topics.  
“Hmmm, let’s see. Oh, did I tell you I had an audition this past week?”  
“No. How did you do?”  
“I was the best one there. I rehearsed for days to make sure I could capture the essence of the character.”  
“Yeah, he used an entire tube of toothpaste practicing brushing his teeth.” Mako complained.  
“Hey, this could be my big break. When I’m a superstar I will buy you a warehouse full of toothpaste to make up for it.”  
“Gee, thanks.”  
“Anything for my big bro.”  
“So Asami, how are you adjusting?” Mako asks me. That is a big question. I wonder if he’s asking to be polite or if he really wants me to answer that honestly.  
“It’s a lot of work, but I’m making progress.” Please let that suffice.  
Korra clears her throat. “Is someone going to ask about me?”  
“We already know about you we live with you.” Mako replies.  
“And I talk to you every night so I already know too.” I say.  
“How do you know I didn’t save some juicy tidbit for today?”  
“Did you?” We all ask.  
“No, but it’s the principle of the thing.” The guys groan at her response. I wish I had known them before I lost my sight. I would know their faces and the little quirks each of them have. Korra and Bolin sound especially animated when they talk. I would’ve seen how Bolin lights up when talking about acting. I would know Korra’s smile. 

I shake off those thoughts. “Are you guys done?”  
“Yeah we’re done.” Bolin quietly answers. “I guess it’s time to go.” I hear him get up from the table.  
“Thanks Asami. I really had a good time.” Mako offers.  
“Yep. You definitely take hanging out to a new level. I can’t wait to tell my dad about riding the Phantom. He’s going to be so jealous.” Korra tells me.  
“Wait guys, today is not over... unless you have other stuff to do.” I say quietly.  
“What do you mean?”  
“There’s more?”  
“I don’t know if I can take anymore.” I adore Bolin.  
“Yes, there’s more. I was hoping to take you all someplace special to me.”  
“I’m in.” Korra says.  
“Us too.” Bolin adds.  
“Good. Let’s go.” I get up from the table. “Thank you Lily. I’ll be in touch.”  
“Sure thing Little Boss. Now, go have fun.” Lily replies.

Everyone says bye to Lily as we head back to the parking lot. I tell the trio to follow Mr. Lee to our second destination.


	12. The Print Shop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami and her friends hang out and relax after their time at the track.

A little while later the car comes to a stop and I get out. The trio are right behind us and they all come up to me on the sidewalk. This is an old neighborhood on the south side of campus that is a mix of residential and commercial buildings. We’re standing in front of a 4 story brick warehouse with the words “Print Shop” painted in white on the red bricks.  
“Asami, what is this place?” Korra inquires.  
“What’s so special about a print shop?” Mako wonders out loud.  
“This isn’t just any print shop. It’s my print shop. Let me show you.” I take out a set of keys from my purse and walk up to the wrought iron gate protecting a small courtyard. I let us into the courtyard and find the inner wooden doors. Using a different key I open one of the heavy doors and walk through gesturing for my guests to follow. We are in a foyer with a freight elevator directly ahead and another door to our right. I decide to start with the door on the right. I unlock that door using a keypad and open it. I gesture for them to follow me into the room. 

“So, what do you think?” In front of us is my personal garage and workshop. It takes up almost the entire first floor which is two stories tall. There are skylights down the center of the room and plenty of windows along the upper walls. At the far end of the room, on the wall facing the street, are two big garage doors. In the far corner opposite of the garage doors are the car lifts, tool chests, and a welding bench. The rest of the room holds a mix of cars and motorcycles. Some of the cars I use to drive. The others are classic Satomobiles that I was restoring. Of the bikes, one is a touring bike and the other is one of my sport bikes. There is another one that is a prototype I was working on. Nearest to us, along the wall with the door, is some shelving with storage bins and my workbench with schematics and rough designs sits in front of that. A kitchenette and bathroom are at the end of the work area.  
“Holy macaroni.” Mako whispers.  
“Yeah, what he said.” Korra whispers too.  
“Okay Asami.” Bolin has grabbed me by the shoulders. “We are your friends and you can trust us. Tell us the truth. Are you Batman and is your driver Alfred?”  
“She can’t be Batman you dunce. She’s a girl.” Mako points out.  
“Point taken. Are you Batwoman?” Bolin rephrases.  
I laugh at his earnestness. “No Bo. I am not Batwoman.”  
“That’s cool. I get it. We haven’t known each other for very long so you don’t feel comfortable telling us your secret identity. Just know that we’ve got your back okay.” He lets go of my shoulders and walks into the space following Korra and Mako. I hear their footsteps and whistles as they move about the space.

The longer they quietly nosed around the space the more exposed I felt. I know that I invited them here, but they are the first people in my place that are not employees.

“So why print shop?” Mako speaks up.  
“This place was a printing press many years ago. When I found it there were still some items here from back then. I thought it would be cool to pay respect to what was here before me. You know?”  
“I get it.” He says.  
“Hey guys, let me show you the rest of my place.” I call to them.  
“There’s more? Does your awesomeness know no bounds?”  
“Absolutely not.” I answer Bolin. “Come on.”

We leave the garage and go back into the foyer where I lead them into the freight style elevator. I take us up to the fourth floor of the building. The door opens and we enter my loft apartment.

The third and fourth floor run the width of the warehouse and takes up about a quarter of its length. This makes the building look like an ‘L’ when viewed from the street. The loft has concrete floors with old newspaper pages laid under layers of wax and the walls are exposed brick with large windows. The ceiling is a combination of metal beams and concrete with exposed ducts and pipes. I had ceiling clouds hung running in two rows down the middle of the length of the loft to help absorb the noise bouncing off all of the hard surfaces. Heavy red curtains going from ceiling to floor also help. 

The elevator is in the middle of front wall dividing it in half. Several feet from the elevator is a seating area that faces a freestanding rectangular gas fireplace with a gleaming chimney going up into the ceiling. Left of the elevator is the kitchen. The stove and cabinets are along the front wall while the sink is in the island directly opposite. The refrigerator is against the left wall. Beyond the island is the dining table which has an iron frame with a thick glass top. The chairs around it have iron frames with leather over the seat and backrest. Suspended above the table is an iron beam with lightbulbs hanging at various lengths. On the far side of the dining room is a clear path going past the living room area to an archway. The bedroom, master bath, and walk in closet are on the other side. The wall that divides the living room from the bedroom holds the shelving that houses the television and various media components. Facing the tv is a big, u shaped, dark grey sofa with plenty of pillows and throws around it. In front of the sofa is a metal and leather steamer trunk that is used as a coffee table and extra storage.

By the living room, propped against the right wall, is my first name spelled out in vintage marquee lighted letters. Moving along the wall back towards the elevator is the huge bookcase stuffed with everything from fine literature to engineering and math books. Next to the bookcase is my office area. There is a sawhorse desk with metal legs and a glass top. I splurged on the desk chair because of my bad habit of sitting for hours at a time studying or designing. I ended up with an ergonomic, red wonder that looks like it’s from the future and is as comfortable as a chair could ever be. Behind the desk, on the wall, is a large framed schematic of Harmony Tower. Just past the office area, on the front wall, is a closet and a guest bathroom.

“So this is how the other half live.” Mako was the first to break the silence once the elevator doors opened.  
“Unbelievable. Your bookshelf is so big you need a ladder. Have you read all of those books?” Bolin asks.  
“I’ve read most of them, but several of them are reference books so I haven’t read those.” I tell him.  
“This place looks like it came straight out of an interior design magazine. Do you actually live here?” Korra asks.  
“Well, I did before the accident. I’ve been living at my dad’s place for the last seven months or so but, I wanted to bring you guys my place. I was hoping we could have a movie night like we did at your place. I even got everyone’s favorite snacks.” This was a big gamble and a bit presumptuous on my part. I don’t know the protocol for hang out time with your friends. I mean, how much is too much?  
“Sounds good to me.” Korra says.  
“I’m always up for snacks and movies.” Bolin adds.  
“Sounds good to me too.” Mako joins in.  
“Great! Drinks are in the fridge. Help yourself. The snacks are on the coffee table already.” I announce and move towards the living room. Because I’d practiced yesterday, I was able to move around easily. I hear the guys gawking at the refrigerator. Eventually they all come to the living room to join me.

“What are we going to watch?” Korra inquires.  
“Bolin got me thinking earlier about Batman. Is that okay?”  
“Wait. Which one?” Mako challenges.  
“I have them all, but I was thinking about The Dark Knight trilogy.” Suddenly I hear sniffles and quiet sobs.  
“Bro, what’s wrong?” Mako and Korra ask almost in unison.  
“She has my favorite candy already mixed.” He softly answers between sobs.  
“It’s okay bro. Calm down.” Mako soothes his brother.  
“Should I not have done that?” I ask hesitantly.  
“You’re fine. Bolin can get so happy he gets overwhelmed. I promise he is very happy right now. He’ll calm down in a bit. Let’s just start the movie.” Korra assures me.  
“Actually, I’ll need your help with that. See the tablet on the table?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Grab that and tap the screen. Then just tap the correct picture to turn on the tv and pick a movie.”  
“Sweet.” I hear Korra tapping on the tablet.  
“Hey Asami. What about all of the light in here? Won’t it be hard to see the screen?” Mako queries.  
“Don’t worry.” I answer with a smirk. As soon as Korra figured out how to setup the movie the curtains automatically began to close and the ambient lights that are at the base of the sofa turn on.  
“Whoa.” Mako exhales.  
“Get comfy and enjoy the show.” I say with a smirk on my face.

It’s late now because we watched all three movies. We ordered pizza for dinner after the first movie and continued to watch the other two movies. When the last movie was over we cleaned up our mess in the living room. I walked them to the front door to say goodnight.

“Night Batwoman. Call me when you need a sidekick.” Bolin says while hugging me.  
“Night Bolin.” I reply without egging him on.  
“Thanks again Asami. Goodnight.” Mako walks out behind Bolin.  
“No problem. Goodnight.”  
“Hey, where’s your driver?” Korra steps up to me.  
“In bed I hope.”  
“Are you staying here tonight?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Cool. G’night.”  
“Night Korra.”  
Once I hear the truck and bike drive off I close the heavy front door, lock it, and put the security bar in place. Back in my loft I realise I should have asked Korra to turn off the lights because they are all controlled by the tablet and I don’t know which ones are on. Oh well, I’ll look into a different control system another day. Right now the plan is to take a quick shower and go to bed. After having a restless night last night and a long day today, I’m tired and looking forward to sleeping in my bed again.


	13. An Unpredictable Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A quiet night alone turns turns into a scary experience for Asami.
> 
> ***Warning: This chapter contains descriptions of a panic attack.***

I bolt straight up in my bed. I can’t breathe. My heart is pounding in my chest.  
No, no, no, no, no. Not right now. Not tonight.  
Tears start to stream down my face.  
Why is this happening to me?  
I’m feeling dizzy, my fingers are numb, and it’s like there’s a vice on my throat.  
I need help. I don’t know who to call. I don’t know what time it is.  
Shit. Shit. Shit.  
I fumble around groping for my phone. It should be here somewhere.  
Fuck! Where is it? I start throwing all the pillows off the bed trying to find the phone.  
Something hard hits the floor.  
Shit! I scramble off of the bed. I’m on all fours feeling around on the floor for my phone.  
I finally find it and clutch it to my chest.  
My heart is beating so fast I’m scared it’s going to just stop working.  
I shouldn’t have stayed here. It’s too soon. I’m so stupid.  
I try to press the button on my phone to make a call, but my fingers are numb and clumsy.  
It takes both hands and all of my concentration to press the damn button.  
Please. 

“Ding”  
“Call Korra.” My tongue is thick making my voice sound strange.  
“I don’t understand. Please repeat that.” I hate my phone right now.  
“Call Korra.”  
“I don’t understand. Please repeat that.” Please.  
“Call Korra.”  
“Dialing Korra.”  
Ring...  
Ring...  
Ring...

“Hello? Asami?” Korra’s voice comes through the phone’s speaker.  
“Help.” It’s all I can croak out clearly.  
“Asami! Where are you?” Her voice is strong and clear despite the ringing in my ears.  
“H-home.”  
“Are you hurt?”  
“No. I can’t… I can’t…”  
“Shhh. It’s okay. Breathe with me. In for two; out for three. Okay. One, two. One, two, three. Good. Again.” Korra voice changes from concerned to soothing as she talks me through several repetitions of breathing in and out.  
“Why is this happening to me? I was just trying to sleep!” I’m crying again.  
“I know it’s scary, but you’re going to be okay. Keep breathing with me.” We breathe together for a few more minutes.

“How are you feeling now?”  
“I’m not dizzy anymore, but I’m still shaky.”  
“Okay. You’re doing good. Can you get to the front door?”  
“I don’t know. I got turned around trying to find the phone and I don’t know where I am. I’m lost.” What kind of pathetic idiot gets lost in their own home? Me, that’s who.  
“That’s okay. Keep breathing. Try to find something solid.” I hold onto the phone with one hand and reach out with the other. I inch forward on my knees silently praying to find something I can recognize. My probing hand bumps something. I feel around and discover my makeup vanity.  
“I found my makeup bench.”  
“Good. Picture your loft in your mind and visualize where you are. You’re not lost. You’re safe in your bedroom.” It takes me a while before I can visualize the loft correctly.  
“I know where I am now.”  
“Okay good. Can you get to the front door?”  
“Why? I don’t want to go anywhere.”  
“I know. I want you to let me in.”  
“What?! How?! When did you get here?!” I’m yelling and panicking all over again.  
“Asami. Remember to breathe. I just want to make sure you’re okay. I know how bad panic attacks can be. You don’t have to let me in if you don't want to. It’s okay.” We breathe together for a bit while I try to calm down enough to ease my dizzyness.  
“Okay. I coming to open the door.”  
“Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.” 

I start walking and Korra talks soothingly into the phone. She reassures me and counts out the breathing exercise every so often. I don’t know how long it takes, but I finally make it to the door and start unlocking it. I open it a crack and feel a warm familiar hand gently touch mine. I let go of the door and Korra comes in fully. She holds my hand while closing and resecuring the door.

“Hey Badass.” Korra’s presence is like a blanket being wrapped around my shaking shoulders providing warmth and comfort. I crumble into the safety of her arms. I hate feeling so weak, but I'm too exhausted to feel anything else.  
“I’m not a badass anymore. I’m a scared wimp who can’t even sleep in her own bed!” The tears start up again.  
“That’s not true. You were able to reach out for help in the middle of a panic attack. It took a lot of guts to call for help. That makes you a badass in my book.” Those warm hands stand me upright and wipe the tears from my face.  
“I feel like an idiot.”  
“You’re not an idiot. You’re an amazing woman whose life has had big changes this year. I know you’re pushing yourself hard trying to meet deadlines and expectations. Nothing is like it use to be and everything is harder. You’re not an idiot. You’re a fighter, Asami.” Korra gets it. She really understands. I don’t know how, but she does.  
“I don’t know what to do.”  
“In the words of Tenzin, ‘When you don’t know what to do, just breathe.’”

Korra and I go back upstairs. She sits me at the island bar while she goes into the kitchen. I hear her run water and turn on the stove.  
“So, where do you keep your tea stuff?” She asks.  
“Umm. The mugs are to the right of the stove. The tea is on the counter in one of those canisters. Utensils are in the drawer on the right.” I listen as Korra moves around the kitchen.  
“How do you like yours?”  
“Strong with a little honey.” A few minutes after the kettle whistled, Korra places a steaming mug in my shaky hands and holds them steady.  
“I’m not going to pry, but if you want to talk I will always listen.”  
“Tenzin thinks I should talk about the accident. But I’m scared that if I do, I’ll have to relive everything that has happened since then.” I take a sip of the tea and my body relaxes as the hot liquid helps to relieve the tension in my muscles.  
“Tenzin is usually right about these things. You should probably talk about it. I’m sure the thought of reliving the moment that changed your life is freaking you out, but the alternative is worse.”  
“Why do you seem to know so much about panic attacks?”  
“I told you that I had a rough time when I moved here. I’ve learned a lot over the past few years.” She has mentioned that, but she’s always so vague. Maybe one day she’ll give me the whole story.

“Thank you... for everything. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t answered your phone. By the way, how did you get here? You never got off the phone so you can’t be on your bike.”  
“You’re right. Hehe. I kinda commandeered Bolin’s truck.”  
“Wow. I… I can’t believe you did that for me.”  
“Believe it. Now, how are you feeling?”  
I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. “Better. Just wiped out.”  
“Why don’t you try to sleep? She removes the almost empty mug from my grip. “I’ll just clean up real quick.”  
“Are you going to leave?”  
“Um, I was going to but I can stay if you want me to.”  
“I would like it if you would stay at least until later in the morning. I just don’t want to be here alone right now.”  
“No problem. I’ll text Bolin to let him know where his truck is so he won’t think it’s stolen. I know he doesn’t have to work in the morning so he should be fine until I get back. Go get some sleep and I’ll crash on the couch. If you need me, just holler.”

I get back to my room and remember that I threw pillows everywhere. I find two of them on my way to the bed. I’ll look for the others later. Collapsing on the bed I snuggle into it’s softness and pray that I can get a few hours of peaceful sleep.

I wake up, thoroughly cocooned by the pillows and comforter, to enticing smells easing me from a deep sleep. I lie still while my mind catches up with my body. I remember asking Korra to stay, so that must be her in the kitchen. I get out of bed and go to the bathroom. On my way I find another pillow.

Walking to the kitchen I hear Korra humming a tune that seems familiar. Her back must be to me because she hasn’t said anything yet. I take a seat at the island and listen. After a few bars I pick up on the song.  
“The power of the music of the night.” I sang out in time with her humming.  
“Oh shit! Asami!” There is clanging at the stove. “You scared the shit out of me!”  
“Sorry. I just couldn’t help myself once I recognised the song you were humming. I would have never guessed you for a Phantom of the Opera type of girl.”  
“Yeah, me either until I accidentally watched the movie and was hooked.”  
“How do you accidentally watch movie that’s over two hours long?” Korra, usually with Bolin, has an amazing ability to get into some odd situations.  
“Let’s just say there was alcohol and betting involved. Anyway, how did you sleep?” There was more movement around the kitchen.  
“The second attempt was a lot more successful than the first.”  
“Glad to hear it.” This time the refrigerator opened and closed.

“What are you doing and what smells so good?”  
“Um, so I woke up a while ago and was feeling a bit... antsy and normally I go for a run when I feel like that but I didn’t want to leave you alone so I thought I would just have something to eat but your fridge was fully stocked and your stove was beckoning for me to give it a try and I kinda got carried away and cooked a little bit more than I probably should have and I’m sorry and I’ll restock everything I promise I just couldn’t help myself.” She was a rambling mess.  
“Are you done?” I asked calmly with my eyebrows raised.  
“I’m sorry.”  
“Korra, it’s no problem.” I smile at her. “What did you cook?”  
“I made a spinach and cheese quiche and since the oven was on I also baked some blueberry muffins. I just finished making a stack of pancakes and cooked some breakfast sausage too.”  
“That’s a lot. How long have you been up?” I’m completely shocked right now.  
“Um, a while.” She says quietly. “But that’s not important. Are you hungry? Can I make a plate of some breakfast goodness for you?” Her bright tone returns.  
“Sure.”  
“Sweet! I give you a little of everything. Have a seat at the table and I’ll bring it over.”

I timidly sit at the dining table and wonder what I’ve gotten myself into this time. I mean Korra is great and I trust her implicitly, but quiche. Who makes quiche, other than my father’s chef? Besides it’s one thing to smell good but I can’t see the food so who knows what she’s put together. Soon enough plates are placed before me on the table and I’m given utensils and instructions to dig in. I start with the quiche and OH MY SPIRITS! “This is absolutely delicious!” I manage to say between bites. I try a muffin next and was again surprised by how good it was. It practically melted in my mouth. The pancakes were next and I was not disappointed. They were soft and fluffy and were topped with nuts and syrup. I was full as a buffalo tick and happy as a butterfly lark.

“Korra, I can’t believe you cooked all that and it was mind blowingly delectable. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I never would have guessed you could cook. You seem more like an instant noodles kind of girl.” Korra lets out a full belly laugh at my words.  
“Oh man, thanks for the laugh. I needed that.” She’s still laughing a little as she talks. “One; I’m glad you like my cooking. That means so much coming from someone who has had their food cooked by professionals most of her life.” I would object, but she is correct. “Two; you are right about me being an instant noodle girl. However, I had to learn how to cook when I moved in with the guys. It also helps to know how to cook when you’re studying nutrition and the body.”  
“I hadn’t thought of that. Speaking of, have you completed registration yet?”  
“Yep. I got everything done online. What about you?”  
“I got most of it done online, but I have to go on campus to talk with my professors and meet with the counselor at the disability resource center. Do you have time this week to go with me?”  
“Sure. I have practice and stuff in the morning, but I’m generally available after that. So just let me know when you want to go.”  
“Okay.” I had been dreading going back on campus for the first time with some random guide leading me around. I’m completely relieved now that Korra is going with me.

“Hey, I was planning to go to the island today. Would you like to come with me? You could talk to Tenzin.”  
“I think I’m just going to relax here for the day. I’ve had a very busy week and just want to chill out for a while.” I’m sure she can pick up on the tiredness in my voice.  
“After what happened last night are you sure you don’t want to see Tenzin? Maybe talk through a few things?” I think if anyone else said that to me I would get defensive, but when Korra says it I’m appreciative of her concern for me. Wierd.  
“It’s not that I don’t want to see Tenzin… I just want to be low key today. You’re right though. I should talk to him. I’ll call him later.”  
“I’ll just clean up the kitchen and head out then.” I hear her moving around, taking the plates from the table to the kitchen. I start to think about what she said earlier about being antsy. The water is running and it sounds like there is a lot to clean up.

“Hey Korra?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Are you alright?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“I’m just wondering because you couldn’t have gotten much sleep and you said you were feeling antsy this morning.”  
“Oh. Um. I’m okay. I just need to, uh, burn off some energy.” There’s nervousness in her voice and I can feel the lie in her words.  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yeah, yeah. No worries.” Why would she lie to me?

We didn’t say too much to each other after that. When she was done in the kitchen I asked for her help to find all of the pillows and put them back on the bed. I also asked her to open the curtains and turn on the radio because both are controlled by the tablet. I’ve got to find another way to control everything. Once I was all set, I walked her out and listened to her get in the truck and drive off before I closed the door. 

I decide to spend the rest of my day not thinking about why Korra would lie to me. After all we’re still getting to know each other. Just because I spill my guts every time I talk to her doesn’t mean she has to do the same. Right? Maybe she doesn’t want to burden me with her problems when I have a mountain of my own issues. If that’s true, then how do I get her to open up to me? I’m realising that as much as Korra and I talk, she never talks about her life before moving to Republic City. I wonder what she would say if I ask. Would she lie? ARGH! This is exactly what I didn’t want to think about!

I spend the rest of the afternoon roaming around my loft. When I was here the other day I just moved around to feel the space. Today, I’m trying to create a new mental map of the place. I’m going through cabinets and shelves touching things and placing braille labels all over the place.

Soon enough my phone alarm starts chiming. It’s my ‘call Tenzin’ alarm. I would rather not have the conversation that I’m about to have, but I told Korra I would call. I get comfortable on the couch and call Tenzin.

“Hello. Tenzin speaking.”  
“Hi Tenzin. It’s Asami. Do you have time to talk?” I tell myself not to be nervous.  
“Of course Asami. Korra said you had a bad night. How are you?"  
“I’m okay now, but late last night I had another panic attack.” I’m so disappointed with myself.  
“Oh dear. What was happening to cause this one?” His voice is seeping with concern.  
“Nothing. I was sleeping and woke up already having the attack. It was a bad one. I had a hard time breathing and couldn’t focus. My whole body was shaking.”  
“Where you back in the car like before?”  
“No. This time I felt lost. I knew I was in my loft, but I felt like I was being pulled away… That doesn’t quite describe it. Ugh. I can’t really explain it.” It’s hard to describe going crazy.  
“That’s fine. I think I understand. How did you cope?”  
“I called Korra and she helped me calm down. She even came over and after a while I was able to go back to sleep.”  
“Ah. It would seem that Korra has become an anchor for you.”  
“Yeah. She has.”

“Have you thought about talking to her?”  
“I thought about it this morning, but Korra seemed... off."  
“How so?”  
“She stayed at my place last night and when I got up she had cooked a breakfast feast that must have taken quite a while to prepare. When I asked her about it all she would say was that she was feeling antsy. I know Korra doesn’t sit still but she was fidgety. I’m worried that my issues are starting to have an effect on her.”  
“She seemed fine when I saw her. Maybe you should talk to her about your concerns.”  
“Is talking your response to everything?”  
“The biggest problems can usually be resolved with even just a little talking. You’ve seen the results yourself.”  
“You’re right. I just don’t want to ruin this new friendship. I feel like I’m bringing nothing but doom and gloom to the table while Korra brings puppies and rainbows.”  
Tenzin had to laugh at that analogy. “I know for a fact that is not true. You should have heard Korra talk about going to the track. She especially got excited when talking about driving one of your newer motorcycles around the track with you giving her pointers over the radio. Listen Asami, I know you have concerns about being a good friend and the best advice I can give you is this: Treat your friends with the same care you want to be treated with.”  
“You make it sound so easy.”  
“Nothing worth doing is ever easy.”

Tenzin is right, but I am stubborn. I just need a little more time. I need to focus on preparing for Korra’s game. After the game her schedule will clear up for a bit before school starts. We can talk then.


	14. The Big Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami attends Korra's arena football match.

Korra and I met up Tuesday at the edge of campus. She brought lunch and we decided to eat outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. After lunch we walked to the engineering complex, which consists of four buildings. Each building sits at a corner of a square with a courtyard in the middle. The buildings are interconnected both underground and via enclosed walkways on the third floor of each building. I don’t know why I was so worried about being on campus; it’s not like I have to maneuver over the whole thing. All of my classes and the library are in the complex.  
We found each of my professors’ offices without difficulty. They were aware of my mitigating circumstances and had plans already outlined to allow me to continue my studies. I will be assigned a fellow classmate to help me with the hands on assignments and the books needed were ordered in digital and braille formats where available.

With that task complete we headed to the disability office so I could meet my counselor and finalize any remaining paperwork. My counselor turned out to be one of those people who are overly happy and make you suspicious of them. When we left Korra told me that while I was speaking with the counselor, she was using her phone to look at mug shots of people on most wanted lists around the world to see if the counselor was on any of them.

The rest of the week was normal. I went back to my usual routine of learning to get around and studying braille. I stayed at my place during the day and slept at the mansion. I was afraid of having another panic attack and I didn’t want to bother Korra in the middle of the night again. Staying at my dad’s made me feel like I took a step backwards from my goal of independence, but I reasoned that it was a temporary setback.

The game turned out to be a championship game. Clearly I had not been paying attention or else I would have known that fact ahead of time. I had arranged for everyone to join my father and I in his luxury suite. This serves multiple purposes. First, it gives me a place to enjoy the game without having to be in the middle of strangers yelling and drinking. Second, it allows my dad to meet Mako and Bolin. Third, Tenzin would have a safe place to bring the kids without worrying about them running around the whole arena.

I arrived at the stadium with my dad and we made our way to the suite. Thankfully, we used a private entrance and elevator, because I’m not sure I would have been able to walk through the rowdy crowd. As we entered the suite my dad left instructions with the concierge to keep an eye out for Tenzin and his family. I’d been texting with the guys and knew that they came with Korra about an hour ago. I sent them another text to let them know to come up when they were ready.

The suite is fairly large and well appointed. There are plush chairs and a sofa, big screen tvs, a fully stocked bar, a buffet table with an assortment of food and snacks, and a private bathroom. The wall that faces the field is a glass partition that can be opened or closed. On the other side of the glass are 14 private seats. My dad mainly used the suite for business purposes and I’ve used it a couple of times before to impress whatever snobby bunch I was hanging out with, but I never really appreciated it until now. With the glass partition closed the roar of the growing crowd is greatly muffled.

Shortly after our arrival Tenzin and his bunch poured through the door with Mako and Bolin on their heels. My father and I stood to greet our guests.  
“Beautiful woman, I’ve missed you!” The boy’s voice was oddly over my head.  
“Hi Meelo. Where are you?”  
“He’s on my shoulders.” Tenzin answered for the boy. “It’s the easiest way to keep him from getting into things.” I greeted the rest of the family warmly as they entered the suite.  
“Tenzin, Pema it’s so good to see you again.” My dad’s tone was light and happy. It felt good to hear him sound carefree.  
I was soon placed in a crushing hug. “Hey Bolin.” I squeeze out.  
He lets go only to hold my shoulders in his excitement. “Asami! Guess what? I got a call back today and they told me I got the part! I got the toothpaste commercial!”  
“Oh my Spirits! I knew you could do it. Congratulations!” We hugged again.  
“This must be the aspiring actor you told me about.” My dad stepped up to my side.  
“Dad this is Bolin and he just got a part in a commercial.” I was beaming with pride for my friend.  
“Congratulations young man. I should get you to do a commercial for Future Industries.”  
“Do you hear that bro? At this rate I’ll be on the A list in no time!”  
“One step at a time lil’ bro.” Mako’s reserved voice responds.  
“Dad this is Mako, he’s Bolin’s older brother.” I reach out and place my hand on Mako’s shoulder.  
“The future police officer am I correct?” My dad asks.  
“Yes sir.”  
“The city could use more good young men like yourself.” My dad was really pouring on the charm tonight and I was grateful for it.  
“Thank you sir.”  
“No need to be formal. Relax and have fun.”

With a few minutes left until the game started everyone settled in. The brothers and the kids sat in the private seats while the adults and I stayed inside. Soon the announcer could be heard introducing the singers for the national anthem. Once the anthem was over the announcer introduced the Ba Sing Se Stingers. It seemed like half the stadium cheered for the opposing team. When the rukus died down a wild cat’s roar was heard over the speakers and the theme music for the home team started playing. The announcer called out the names and positions of the starting lineup. The crowd was going crazy cheering and stomping their feet. I could feel the vibrations and it was like nothing I’ve ever experienced.

I soon learned that the Stingers were no pushovers and that this game was going to be a hard win for either team. I listened intently to the announcer call out the movements on the field. Korra was having a hard time gaining any yardage against the defence. The away team seemed intent on shutting her down and double teamed her throughout the first half of the game. By halftime the score was even as the teams went to their locker rooms.

“Asamiiiiii, you have to come sit with us. Korra needs your support!” Bolin whines as he enters the suite from private seats.  
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea Bolin.”  
“But we need you!”  
“It’s pretty loud out there and I don’t know if I’m ready for that.” I want to be out there, but I’m terrified of having a panic attack.  
“Korra said you might be reluctant. How about this? Bo and I will be on either side of you. You can even hold our hands if you want. If it’s too much let us know and we’ll come inside immediately. You owe it to yourself to try.” Mako said.  
“Yeah and you can trust us because we’re your friends, and Mako is a cop.” Bolin adds.  
“And Korra would kill us if anything happened to you.” Mako admits.  
“Okay. Okay. I’ll come sit with you, but if I say I need to leave -”  
“We’ll rush you in here lickety split!” Bolin interjects.

With one hand on Mako’s arm in front of me and the other in Bolin’s hand behind me, we make our way to the seats. Mako loaned me his earbuds so I could listen to the radio broadcast of the game via my phone. This way I can know what’s happening on the field. I put the earbuds in place and used an app on my phone to tune into the game just before the start of the second half.

When the two teams came back onto the field the crowd went wild. I’m so thankful for the brothers. I held on to both of them while reminding myself that I can relax and have fun. Soon enough I was making just as much noise as everyone else. Korra was still being double teamed which meant that a teammate was always left unguarded. The Wild Cats took advantage of that and scored quickly. The Stingers were not giving up without a fight and answered each touchdown with one of their own.

It’s down to the last seconds of the second half. The game is tied and Korra has not been able to run freely. She’s shown her frustration by yelling at the refs and pushing against her defenders. The Wild Cats have the ball and just finished their last timeout. Mako, Bolin, and I have our arms linked together and are on our feet. The announcer starts calling the play in my ear.

The ball is hiked and the quarterback hands off the ball to Korra. Instead of running Korra shuffles around behind the blockers while they try to hold off the horde of defenders. Seconds are ticking off the play clock while Korra still holds the ball. The Stingers break through the blockers and are after Korra who begins ducking and dodging their tackles. She finally launches the ball into the air and it sails downfield to the unguarded quarterback who catches the ball and easily runs into the endzone. The buzzer sounds and the Wild Cats have won the championship!

The Wild Cats bench empties as the players run onto the field to celebrate and the Stingers mope back to their side of the field. Bolin and I are hugging and jumping until Mako stops us. The announcer’s voice comes over the speakers explaining that Korra took a late hit and hadn’t gotten up yet. The arena is silent. My hands flew to Mako’s shirt, gripping it tightly.

“What’s happening?” The arena is too quiet.  
“The medics and coaches are by Korra’s side. They are checking on her.” Mako’s voice is tight.  
“She’ll be okay. Korra is tough as nails. You’ll see.” Bolin whispers as he lays his hands on my shoulders. I’m not sure if he meant his words to be a comfort to me or himself.  
“Talk to me Mako!”  
“They’ve got her helmet off, but I can’t see what they’re doing from here.”  
I put my forehead on Mako’s chest and started quietly begging. “Please get up. Please, please get up.”  
Bolin’s voice cut through my mantra. “She’s moving. I think...she’s getting up. She’s up! Korra’s up and waving!” Bolin pulled Mako and me into a bear hug. “I told you she was tough. I told you!” We weren’t the only ones excited by her recovery. The crowd was going ballistic.  
“Bro, you’re squishing Asami.”  
“Sorry Asami.” Bolin let us go. I was being squished but I didn’t mind considering the circumstances.  
“It’s alright. Why don’t we go inside and watch the postgame interviews?”  
“Great idea.”

This time Bolin leads the way while Mako brings up the rear. The kids are already inside and everyone is excitedly recounting their favorite moments of the game. I’m in the middle of it all and it feels so good to be in this moment. A moment that seemed impossible just a few weeks ago. I want this. I think before I was going through the motions without real belief that anything would change, but now I know without a doubt that I want this. I want these friends. I want these moments. I want to be happy and full of life.

“Asami? Are you okay?” Jinora’s gentle voice pulls me out of my thoughts.  
“Huh? Yes, I’m fine.”  
“Mako and Bolin want to go downstairs and wait for Korra. Do you want to come with us?”  
“Yeah. Let me just tell my dad first.”  
“Okay. We’ll wait for you outside.”  
“Dad?” I grab my purse and cane and walk across the suite towards the door.  
“Yes, sweetheart.”  
“I’m going downstairs to wait for Korra. I’ll meet you at the car. Okay?”  
“Okay. Have fun.”

We’re underneath the stands in front of the entrance to the locker rooms and training area. Meelo, Ikki, Jinora, and Bolin have formed a line and cheer and high-five the players as they exit. Mako and I are standing slightly apart from the others quietly waiting for Korra to emerge. Each time the door opens I can hear the roudiness of the ladies inside and my ears can’t help but to seek out Korra’s voice.

I believed Mako and Bolin when they said she walked off the field waving to the crowd. I believed Korra’s voice on the tv during her interview when she said she was okay. Yet, I needed to confirm it for myself. I needed to stand in her presence and ask her and hear her voice firsthand. Only then would I be satisfied.

Korra’s laughter rang in the air as she came through the door. I know Bolin engulfed her in one of his signature, bone crushing hugs because her laugh was abruptly cut off and Mako left my side in order to get his brother to drop our friend.

“Korra you were amazing out there! That last play was epic!” Bolin cheers.  
“Yeah Korra, you were a true champion tonight.” Mako’s praise was soon echoed by the kids.  
“CHAM-PI-ON! CHAM-PI-ON! CHAM-PI-ON!” They all chant.  
“Thanks you guys. I’m so happy you’re all here. It means a lot to me. Thank you especially Asami. Did you have a good time tonight?” Of all the things that could be on Korra’s mind, she’s concerned with me having a good time.  
“I was having a great time until you laid on the field and scared me half to death. What happened out there? Are you alright?” Whoa Asami. That was a little more emotional than I intended.  
Korra gently rubs her hand up and down my arm. “I had the wind knocked out of me that’s all. It took a minute before I could get my breath back, but I’m fine. I’m so fine in fact I’m going to a championship party. You guys want to join me.?”  
“Sounds like fun. Count us in.” Mako answers.  
“Party! Party! Party!” Meelo starts chanting again.  
“Sorry, little dude. This party is for grown ups only.”  
“Fine! Be that way. It’s probably going to be boring anyway.”  
“How about we have our own party this weekend? I’ll bring pizza and we can have a private party in the cove.”  
“There better be lots of pepperoni on that pizza.” Meelo bargains.  
“Sure thing. Now let’s get you three back to Pema and Tenzin.”

“Have fun guys and be safe.” I step back from the group.  
“Wait. You’re not coming with us?” Korra asks me.  
“Um, no. I was just going to ask Mako to help me get back to my dad’s car. He’s going to take me home.”  
“Oh. Well, I guess I’ll see you later.”  
“Guys, just pick me up out front. Come on Asami.” Mako’s arm grazes my hand. I grab ahold of his arm and we walk away.  
“Sorry about that.” Mako says.  
“About what?”  
“Korra is like Bolin. Sometimes she gets ahead of herself. She should have known you wouldn’t want to go to a party with a bunch of strangers.” Mako is right, but I wasn’t going to admit that out loud.  
“I think she was just trying to include me. She probably didn’t think anything of it until after I said something.”  
“Maybe. I see your dad up ahead.”

My dad drove Mako to the front of the arena where he parted ways with us to meet up with Bolin and Korra. My dad and I drove off and I asked him to drop me off at my loft. I just wanted to be in my own space. By the time I got upstairs I was exhausted. The excitement of the game had worn off and I just wanted to get in my comfy jammies and go to bed. I took a quick shower, put on a super soft cotton tank top and pants, and snuggled deep into my pillows. I was asleep in no time.


	15. Climbing the Walls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter with a tipsy Korra.

An alarm wakes me up. Wait. I didn’t set an alarm. I grab my phone trying to understand why it’s making noise. It takes me a moment to realise it’s ringing.

“Hello.” My voice sounds groggy.  
“Rapunzel, Rapunzel let down your hair!” The caller practically sings into the phone.  
“What?”  
“Rapunzel, Rapunzel let down your hair!”  
“Korra? What are you talking about? What time is it?” I’m so confused right now.  
“Whoa. That was a lot of questions.”  
“What time is it?” I ask more firmly this time.  
“It’s, uh, a little after 2.”  
“In the morning?” I almost yell.  
“Yeah.”  
“Why are you calling me at 2 in the morning?”  
“I wanted to see you. You weren’t at the party and I wanted to celebrate with you. I’m a champion remember?”  
“You’re drunk.”  
“Not completely.”  
“Wait. How did you get here? Did you drive?” If she drove, I’m going to kill her.  
“No, I walked.”  
“Where are you?”  
“I standing under one of your windows. I couldn’t figure out which one was yours. Open the window and I’ll climb up.” She is clearly drunk.  
“How about you go to the front door and I’ll come open it for you?” Hanging up the phone and brushing a hand through my hair I take a moment to wake up and get my bearings. I get to my front door after a couple of minutes and undo the locks. As soon as I open it Korra tumbles into my place.  
“Asamiiii! My buddy, my pal, my favorite Sato.” Korra wraps her arms around me and picks me up into a spinning hug.  
“Okay, that’s enough. Put me down and stop making yourself dizzy.” Back on the ground, I lock the front door again and lead my friend upstairs. Clearly alcohol makes Korra hyper. She hasn’t stopped talking and moving since I opened the door. I make her drink water and try to settle her down.  
“Now that you are less hyper, I’m going back to bed. Try to keep it down okay.” I don’t know what she’s is doing but at least she stays quiet. I snuggle into my bed again and quickly drift off.

I wake up feeling well rested and check the time on my phone by pressing the lone button on it’s front. “The current time is 8:57am.” The delicious aroma of food stirs my senses and I remember that Korra came over in the middle of the night. I was a little upset with her last night, but I admit that I’m looking forward to an amazing breakfast and her rambling heartfelt apology.

After completing my morning bathroom routine I walk into the living area of my loft. The air is thick with Korra’s nervous energy.   
“Korra?” I hear a book close and my office chair squeak.  
“Morning Asami.” Korra sounds tired.  
“Did you get any sleep?”  
“Not really. I was too amped.”  
“You should get some rest.”  
“Maybe after breakfast.”  
“Speaking of… what did you make this time?” I hear Korra move to the kitchen.  
“I baked some banana bread earlier and I was thinking of making your favorite when you got up.”  
“Mmm. Sounds perfect.” I take a seat on one of the stools at the island and listen to Korra cook. She’s making my favorite which is a fluffy omelette with ham and mushrooms. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  
“I’m sorry about last night.” Korra talks while cooking.  
“Don’t worry about it. I’m just glad you’re okay and didn’t do anything crazy or stupid.”  
“Well, I did offer to scale the side of your building to get in through a window.” We both chuckle at that and the atmosphere instantly becomes much more relaxed.

We ate breakfast together in a comfortable silence. Korra has slowed down almost comically considering how hyper she was earlier. After we ate I told her to go take a shower and put on something from my closet while I cleaned up in the kitchen. When we were done with our tasks we plopped on the couch and browsed for something to watch on tv. Korra picked some retro cartoon that was airing in a marathon.

It didn’t take her long to curl up facing the back of the couch with her head right by my side. She’s sleeping soundly, even with the tv blaring noise from the silly cartoon. Over time I’ve learned that Korra is at her most comfortable in the midst of chaos. When things get quiet she has a tendency to get nervous and fidgety. This is why I dare not turn down the volume. 

I comb my fingers through her hair and relish the softness of it on my skin. I don’t know how she did it, but she broke through all of my walls and embedded herself in my heart. Thanks to her I’m finally ready to talk about what happened the night my life changed. 

I decide to leave Korra on the couch and spend time in my garage. I change clothes and grab my label maker. Once in my garage I make a plan of action. First I’m going to label the drawers and shelves and maybe rearrange things to make stuff a little easier to find. One thing I’ve learned from my orientation sessions is that organization is key.

I feel along the wall to where the shelving and storage bins are. This is my starting point. I figure that I can label and organize things here and then work my way around the room. I think that once I get back into the swing of things I’ll start working in here again. Obviously I’ll need help, so I plan to talk to my dad about having one of the company’s interns work here or at the track with me for a few hours a week.

I’m so focused on my task of organizing my things and my thoughts that I don’t notice the passage of time. I’m completely startled when I hear someone clear their throat near the door.

“Hey Badass, what cha doin’?” I relax when I recognize Korra’s voice.  
“Hey sleepyhead. I’m organizing.”  
“Is that what you call this mess?” So, maybe I had a few things scattered around me.  
“It’s not so much a mess as it is a work in progress. Anyway, how did you sleep?”  
“Like a baby.”  
“Does that mean you need your diaper changed?” I smile brightly in her direction.  
“Wow. You’ve got jokes today. Maybe I should come over there and move some of those parts around.” I could hear Korra moving closer to me.  
“Nooooooo! Okay, I give. Please don’t touch anything.” I put my arms out in her direction in a futile attempt to stop her.   
“You should see your face right now.” She is laughing at me. “I wouldn’t do that. Don’t worry.”  
“Thank you. By the way what time is it?”  
“Just after 3. Speaking of, I need to get going. I owe Meelo a pizza Do you want to come?”  
“No thanks. I need to finish what I’ve started. If I stop now I’ll be lost.” So, maybe I had more than a few things scattered around me.  
“Oh. Okay.” She sounded dejected.  
“I was hoping that we could hang out though. Are you busy tomorrow?”  
“Not that I know of.”  
“Great! Come over and make sure to ride your bike.”  
“Sure. See ya later.”   
“Bye, Korra.”

After Korra leaves I resume my task of organizing my workspace. It takes me a couple more hours, but everything is labeled and neatly placed. Before I head upstairs to settle down for the evening, there’s something I want to do first.  
Since I’ve decided on a plan of action for tomorrow, I will need the appropriate gear. At the end of the shelves are a couple of lockers where I keep my coveralls and riding gear. I open one of the lockers and reach inside. My hand brushes against cold leather. I feel around the item and discover it’s one of my full riding suits. That’s not what I need for tomorrow, so I push it aside and feel the next item. I eventually find my perforated leather jacket and kevlar reinforced jeans and set them on the workbench. At the bottom of the locker are a few pair of riding shoes. I pick out a pair of low cut harness boots. I put the shoes by the workbench and turn back to the locker for the last items I’ll need. I have several helmets that line the top of the locker unit. They are all different colors and patterns and a few of them match the riding suits. I don’t know which one I want or how to find it if I did, so I grab the closest one. As for the gloves, I grab a simple pair and place the items on the workbench.

I stand next to the workbench and release a deep breath. I never thought I would be here, in this moment, several months ago. Life is good and I’m carefully happy. I don’t want to get too excited and jinx myself, but things are going well and I want to keep it that way. My only hope is that tomorrow doesn’t ruin everything I’ve worked for in the last several weeks.


	16. Into the Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami finally talks about the accident.

Korra comes over around noon with some Chinese takeout and we sit at the kitchen island eating quietly. I’m quiet because I’m really nervous and end up just pushing the food around. Korra’s quiet because she is stuffing her face.

“Talk to me Badass.” Korra finally breaks the silence.  
I put the chopsticks down and take a slow breath to calm my nerves. “I want you to take me for a ride.”  
“Seriously?” Korra squeaks out.  
“Yes. Seriously.”  
“Are you sure you want **me** to take you? I mean, this is a big step for you. Shouldn’t you ask Ken to take you since he’s a professional?”  
“Ken is a great rider, but **you** are the one I trust.”  
Korra reaches out and holds my hands. “I’d be honored to take you for a ride. Where would you like to go?”  
“I want to go up to the first scenic stop on Highway 1.”  
“That’s… very specific.”  
“I’ll explain when we get there. Are you done eating?”  
“Yeah. I’ll clean this up if you want to go change.”  
“Okay.” I get up and head to my room to change clothes. I keep taking steadying breaths while I put on the clothes I picked out yesterday. I will not let my nerves get to me. Riding my bikes and driving were two things that relaxed me before the accident. I know I can’t drive anymore, but I want to reclaim that part of my life.  
I meet Korra at the elevator and we go downstairs. Once in the foyer I lay my cane on the bench and grab my jacket off the hook, putting it on. I hear Korra next to me presumably putting on her gear too. When I’m ready, Korra brushes my hand and I automatically grab her arm so we can leave. She stands by while I lock up then walks me to her bike.

“Asami meet Naga 2.” She says as she places my hand on the tank.  
“Why Naga 2?” I ask while running my hand over the bike.  
“Well, because this bike is as close as I can get to the real Naga. I’ll tell you about her another time.”  
With that said I straighten up and put on my helmet. My fingers have gone numb, because I’m so nervous, causing me to fumble trying to fasten the strap of the helmet. Korra’s warm hands envelope mine and she just holds them for a moment.  
“Asami, you don’t have to do this. We can vege out and watch movies all day instead.”  
“That’s twice you’ve called me Asami and it’s making me nervous.” I must have said something funny because Korra chuckles.  
“Okay Badass. I just want you to know you have an out.”  
“I **need** to do this. Please help me.” 

I must have said the right words because Korra let go of my hands and fastened my helmet strap for me. We quickly decided on some simple signals I could use to communicate with her. I’ll tap her twice to speed up or once to slow down and if I need her to pull over I’ll squeeze. She handed my gloves to me and told me to hop on when I was ready. Getting on the bike was simple but it felt weird to be in the back. It took a moment for me to mentally adjust, but I put my arms around Korra’s middle and settled down.

Korra started the bike and gingerly drove off down the street. She kept a slow pace at first while I acclimated to the feel of being on two wheels again. Once I felt comfortable I tapped twice. We picked up speed as Korra drove through the city to Highway 1.

I could tell when we made it to the outskirts of the city and onto the highway because the traffic noise dramatically reduced and turns became long and sweeping as we began to meander through the Iron Mountain Forest.

It wasn’t long before we reached the first scenic lookout. I knew we were close when I felt Korra slow down. All too soon the bike comes to a stop and the engine is turned off. I’m suppose to let go and dismount, but my body stays frozen in place behind Korra. Thankfully she just sits still and waits for me to make a move.

We’ve been sitting for several minutes when Korra speaks. “I’ve never stopped here before. It’s really beautiful.” The lookout is situated just off of the highway in a clearing with a beautiful view of Yue Bay. There is a small parking lot and benches and picnic tables scattered around the clearing.

“Yes it is.” I detach from Korra and dismount the bike. I take my gloves and helmet off and stand there trying to sort out all of the thought swirling in my head. I was fine during the ride, but now that we are here I’m...  
“You’re not alone, I’m right here.” Korra’s warm hands hold mine. “Come on, let’s relax in the shade of one of these trees.” She guides me to a spot and we both take of our jackets and sit on the bench under a tree.  
“I used to drive out here often. This place was my escape from schoolwork and stalled projects.”  
“Is that why you wanted to come here?”  
“No. I wanted to come here to face my past. My accident was just a few miles back toward the city.” It’s a warm summer day, but my body feels the chill of that fateful night months ago. I reach out and hold on to Korra’s warmth. 

“I was up late working on a paper for school and needed a break, so I decided to go for a drive. It was January and cold out, but because it hadn’t snowed in a while I thought it would be okay. I was going through one of those big, sweeping turns when I was suddenly blinded by headlights. Then I was hanging sideways, secured in the air by my seatbelt. My head felt weird and there was blood dripping from it. I’d never been in an accident before and I was so scared. I mean, I was several miles from the city trapped in my car that was on it’s side. I was so, so scared. I thought… I didn’t think I would…” My throat is so tight I can’t finish my sentence. Tears are running down my face and I’m shaking like a leaf. Korra holds me tight rubbing circles on my back.

I calm down and try to finish explaining what happened.  
“I don’t remember being rescued from the car or arriving at the hospital. I learned later that I had suffered severe head trauma and the swelling is what ultimately caused irreparable damage to my ocular nerves. That’s why I’m blind. I also found out that the driver of the other car was a man who’d been away for business and was trying to get home to his family in time for his kid’s birthday. The police figured that he fell asleep just before I drove around that corner. His car ricocheted off of mine and slammed sideways into a tree and he was killed. I keep thinking if I had left earlier or later this whole thing could have been avoided. I just feel so guilty sometimes.”

“I don’t know about that. Maybe you would have missed him or maybe you would have crashed and the results could have been worse. None of that really matters though. You survived a very bad accident. I won’t say that I know how you feel, because I don’t. I will say that I’m happy you survived and I got to meet you. Know that I’m proud to be your friend. I care about you and will support you and if you ever need it, I still have duct tape.” Korra cleans my face while she talks and her words soothe me and make me smile. 

“I haven’t told you the whole truth about why I moved here. I know you’ve noticed that I get weird sometimes and I want to tell you why. I mean, it’s only fair after you just opened up to me that I return the favor.”

“I’ll listen to anything you want to tell me Korra. I care about you too and if there’s something I can do to help then I will.” We are holding hands again and I give a slight squeeze to reinforce my words.

“Thanks Badass.” Korra takes a big breath and blows it out slowly. “Well, in the water tribe where I’m from, people are generally very spiritual. They strongly believe in the spirits and prophecies and stuff. It turns out that my birth fits into one of those prophecies and as a result some people have been trying to either stop the prophecy from coming true or manipulate it to their own gain.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I was little some people tried to kidnap me and do who knows what with me. Luckily my dad and some villagers were able to fight them off while my mother ran away and hid me. Shortly after that my dad became the chief of our tribe and that painted another target on my back. Apparently the older I got the more true the prophecy seemed to be. There was another attack on me while I was out playing one day. I got away but I ended up lost in the snowy wilderness outside of my village. That’s where I met Naga. My dad was able to find me and after that I was mostly isolated from the public.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“There’s more. The last straw was when my uncle decided to try to use me in his crazy scheme. He was the chief of our sister tribe and openly invaded my tribe in order to get to me. It was all out war for a little while until my uncle was finally brought down.” Korra’s voice is barely above a whisper and her hands are squeezing and releasing mine repeatedly.

“They decided I should come here to stay safe. I got into so much trouble when I first got here. I fought anyone that looked at me too long believing that everyone was a potential threat. I’ve calmed down, but I still get nervous and put my guard up. Not many people know my history because there is still the chance that someone could be looking for me.”

“What about your parents?”

“I give Tenzin letters and he sends them sporadically to his mother, who lives in the next village over from my parents. Every now and then Tenzin will give me a letter from them. It’s just hard you know. I love them and miss them.” I wrap my arms around my friend and try to give her the same sense of comfort that she gave me.

“Now that you know my truth, please don’t try to kill me.” I can tell she’s trying to be funny but there is too much pain in her voice.  
“I would never want to hurt you and if anyone so much as disturbs a hair on your head I will kick their ass.” I hold her closer to me and feel her relax in my arms.

“Thank you Badass.”  
“Thank you for telling me your story.”  
“I just wanted you to know that you’re not alone. I mean, I know our situations are completely different, but we each struggle with something. You know?”  
“Yeah, I do.”

Talking about the accident didn’t reverse my progress, in fact I feel a little better getting it off my chest. All this time I’d held on to the accident like it was my connection to my former life, as though it was so great. It wasn’t. I was lonely and unhappy. Sitting here with Korra I know that I don’t want that life anymore, I want this one. I’m blind and have panic attacks, but I’m not alone. I have my father back in my life. I have my friends who actually care about me. I have Tenzin to help guide me. There’s happiness in this life and I plan to enjoy as much of it as possible.

We sit for a little while longer until Korra’s stomach rumbles.  
“I guess we should get back to you can feed that thing huh.” I laugh and poke her stomach.  
“Hey! No poking.” She jerks away laughing. We both get up from the bench and head toward the bike.  
Once I’m geared up and on the bike I call out to Korra, “Ride like the wind Bullseye!”  
Korra revs the engine and replies, “To infinity and beyond!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading my story and leaving comments and kudos. It means so much to me knowing that people out there appreciate something that I created. Thank you.

**Author's Note:**

> I am a new writer and want to improve so please leave feedback. You can also find me on tumblr.


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